Earls of Chester
by Agneta Steam
Summary: AU. 13th century in England, Europe. More accurately in Cheshire. The life of the Kaiba brothers, Earls of the place, is interrupted by a fugitive, a death, an inheritance and some strange dreams. The beginning of an adventure.
1. Chapter 1

**Earls of Chester:**

**C****hapter**** I:**

They dragged her through a dark narrow passage that seemed to have no end. She did not walk; she did not resist even though she was terrified. Even though she knew very well that there was nothing good waiting for her at the mercy of those men.

There was no hint of hope or rebellion within herself, because to be far from her people was to cross the boundary between heaven and hell.

They threw her on a firm, damp surface, and she heard the door clatter behind her. Then she heard the sound of the beetle moving. And then she perceived nothing but the frequent, distant drip ...

The rain did not cease.

She did not dare to get up to inspect where she was, and she did not even move from the place where she had fallen. He had managed to lock her up once and for all.

She stood there, with her eyes were closed, breathing regularly. Remembering the life she once had and which she had always been proud of: her happiness consisted in dancing at night with her friends in the camp, in going to the river with the fishermen, in escaping to the city for reading the future in the payos' hands and listening to the stories of the elders of the tribe.

And being almost happy. Almost. Because her origin, her customs and her trade brought her many problems. They were discriminated against, persecuted and forced to lead a nomadic life, and they were constantly moving from town to town. And for the habitants of Chester they had no rights. They were not their equals.

She hated this situation, but she could do nothing. They had already defeated her, that time and this time. Now she only had to exist, and she did not know for how long.

Beeston Castle had a very pleasant view, dominated by the green of the fields and the color of a roses garden well taken care of by her friend Lady Mai Valentine. Tea was enjoying the scenery sitting by the big window, looking out over the hills that could be seen deep in the background, behind the conifers.

She had not yet begun to write the letter she intended to send to her cousin Devlin. She waited for Yami and his brother to come back of riding, as they did every morning.

One of her maids, Serenity, the squire's sister, entered the room and she handed her an envelope.

"Who is this from?" she asked.

"I don't know, ma'am," said Serenity. "Rex, the grandson of Mistress Donna has just brought it.

After saying this and with the permission of her boss, she left the room and she went down to the kitchen.

Tea Kaiba watched the yellow envelope for a while, speculating about what it could be about, and she checked that it did not indicate who it came from. She dismissed the idea of her cousin writing her because it would be too much of a coincidence. And the Earls of Cheshire did not believe in coincidences.

Since her sister-in-law had died, she had never seen him again. And Devlin wasn't very much in favor of family communications. Or at least that was the impression she had, in that her older brother and his cousin looked alike.

She decided that it was best to wait for her husband to arrive, she did not want to be surprised.

For two weeks now she had been having a bad feeling, which grew larger with every dream that tormented her at night. She had already taken action against them.

At first she decided to stop having dinner, so when she went to bed her systems would stop working and her brain too, but it didn't work. Then she chose to stop sleeping, but she never afford it, and the dream ended up overcoming her. And she had tried both methods at the same time, since she believed that the need to feed herself would not allow her to fall asleep. But it was all in vain. During fourteen days she had continued to replay her nightmares. Better say her nightmare, because it was always the same. And that was why she decided to write to her cousin.

She heard the sound of a few trotting outside the castle and she assumed it was her husband. Tea walked down the stairs quickly to the living room with the envelope in her hand and she stood by his trophy case.

Yami entered the room followed by Joey and Tristan. He walked to where she was and kissed her, but Tea was too altered to notice details.

"Yami," she said, moving away from her lips, "an envelope has arrived a moment ago."

"Oh... yeah? And who is this from?"

"I don't know, I have not opened it yet," she said, handing it over him.

Yami took it and he opened it quickly, Tea's attitude was too intriguing, and his curiosity consumed his patience. He took out what appeared to be a telegram from Sir. Crawford, the county judge. In it, he asked that they meet in his office the next day, because he had an important matter to deal with.

"Read it, Yami" an impatient Tea ordered. "What does it say?"

_"Sir. Seto Kaiba;_

_Earl of Chester:_

_I know you had not hear from your cousin, the Earl of Southampton, since six years ago. I regret to have to inform you that I have very important information about the fate of Sir. Devlin Kaiba, information that I will let you know tomorrow if you agree to go to my office in the early afternoon._

_Atte._

_Sir. P. Crawford."_

"Yami," said Tea with her arms crossed, seemingly annoyed, "you just opened a letter that was for my brother.

"Of course not," he said calmly. "You gave me the envelope to read. Didn't you say 'Read it, Yami'?"

"But I didn't know it was for him ..." she paused as she watched Joey and Tristan. "Speaking of Seto, where is he? Wasn't he with you and Mokuba?"

"He was," Yami said as he poured himself a glass of wine. "But he went with my grandfather to the town to see the exhibitions."

"With Solomon? He never goes with Solomon."

"I know, but Mokuba asked for it."

"Ok ... that makes sense."


	2. Chapter 2

**Earls of Chester:**

**C****hapter**** II****: **

A little light came in when they opened the cell door. Then she could orient herself better in that place. It was a windowless cell, smooth and gray, with a dark metal door and a thin slit in it. On the roof, in the opposite side of the dungeon, there were two small holes from which droplets of water fell, no longer as fiercely as the night before because the rain had subsided.

They approached and took her by the arms and they pulled her out of the cell. They dragged her back through those narrow corridors toward the exit. Then they entered a large room with white walls with several chairs and some wooden tables. There were a lot of people there. All were prominent citizens of Chester. Everyone was waiting to see her in the flames ...

The holes in the street, which was damp from the recent rain, made the cart wobble every few minutes and it contributed to increase the irritation. He was very annoyed because of that meeting that he had been practically forced to attend. Exactly, the afternoon before Tea kept insisting that they should worry about Devlin. But ... What the hell did he care about what his stupid cousin did?

The cart stopped and he got down. He advanced to the court where Crawford worked and he did not need to look back to know that Solomon was following him, so he stopped short and said,

"You'd better get back to the wagon. It might not be there when we need to come back."

"Yes, sir," said the gray-haired old man of short stature, and hurried back to the car.

Seto walked back to the building and he entered. One of the officers led him to his chief's office and then he retired.

"Oh, young Kaiba," said the tall, white-haired man, "I see you have received my telegram."

Seto didn't answer. He just walked over to the desk and stood with his hands on the back of the seat.

"Have a seat, please," the Judge invited.

"No thanks," he said dryly, annoyed that Crawford seemed to want to avoid getting to the point. "I have little time so you better start at once" he snapped at him with a slight abruptness.

Crawford just smiled and then he crossed his hands. He leaned his chin on them and said,

"I have much to say, Seto. Many things about the death of your cousin Devlin Kaiba."

"Death? Impossible!"

"Get her!" an officer shouted at the others who ran after her. She ran as fast as she could; faster than she had run through her entire existence because her freedom depended on it, and most likely her life as well. She looked both ways, finding nowhere to go, and then she continued on. When she reached the corner of the building, she turned and ran until she got into the trees. She did not know if they had seen her, so she kept on crouching. She watched as the men moved toward the grove and she stood behind one until they moved a little farther.

She came out of her hiding place and she ran to a wagon in the road. In it was an old man who was staring who knows where, thinking who knows what. She climbed up the rear making as little noise as possible and she hid under the seat that was covered by a carpet. If they did not see her, she could possibly escape.

A few minutes later, Seto left Crawford's office. He crossed his path with several officers running in haste as if they were searching for something or someone. But he paid no attention to them. And he didn't have to.

He was much more annoyed than he had been when he entered the building. The truth was that he didn't feel like hosting each person who had something to do with his family in the castle. _"Damn Devlin" _he thought. _"Even in death, he doesn't leave me alone."_

If it had not been for his sister, he would never have attended that meeting with Crawford, and less with Solomon. If it had not been for his sister, it would have been easy to forget that he had a cousin named Devlin. He stepped toward the car, kicking every stone he could find on his way. If it were not for his sister, he would have sold Beeston Castle to any neighboring county. Maybe Lancaster.

When he reached the wagon, he told Solomon to drive back to the got into the carriage and he looked at the floor that was covered with large mud spots.

"This old fool" he murmured. "Surely he came to sleep in here and hemuddled everything with his dirty boots."

He froze for a moment, thinking he had heard a contained laugh. He listened attentively but felt nothing else. It had seemed to him that someone in the wagon laughed.

"I'm going crazy ... Damn old!" he shouted as he staggered into the back of the moving vehicle.

Soon she perceived that the cart stopped and that the man inside was leaving. She waited a few seconds to make sure it was the right time to escape. She stepped out from under the seat and slowly ran the curtain to make sure no one saw her. But it was not so. She saw that two men, the old man she had seen before and a much taller one with brown hair coming back. She lowered the curtain quickly and she hid again mourning her bad luck.

"What was that?" Kaiba pointed to the seat.

"I do not know what you're talking about, sir," said Solomon, then he smirked. "Ah... That's the wagon bank."

"Don't. The carpet moved."

"Seto, the carpet is loose and it can move easily ..." he insisted.

"Yes, but ... Stop calling me Seto!" he shouted very upset. In less than a second, he returned to his indifferent posture and he said without looking at him. "I am Lord Kaiba for you. And now go away from here!"

The old man obeyed and returned to the front of the vehicle, not without murmuring something about the evil character of "Lord Kaiba." If his grandson had not married a Kaiba he wouldn't have to work for them. But his fate was so unjust.

Kaiba stepped into the wagon while still looking at the bench. He could have sworn he had seen the carpet move. To feel laughter ... to see things move ... He was going crazy. Or not…

He crouched beside the bench and he lifted the rug.

"What the hell…?"


	3. Chapter 3

**Earls of Chester**

**Chapter III: **

They were both in the living room, sitting opposite each other and sipping the tea Serenity had just served.

Yami was reading the results of the Jousting Tournaments that had taken place in the farthest counties from Chester. There was no well-known champions since he had not faced any of them in the previous editions of the Kingdom Championship, where the champions of each county participated.

But the most astonishing thing was that Devlin Kaiba had not won in Southampton. He knew that he had been champion since he had known of his existence, that is, since he had married Tea. But that year he didn't and that was very rare. Devlin had lost his touch.

Tea was reading a book that in the morning the dressmaker who had visited her brought her. But she did not care about what she read, she couldn't concentrate. Her attention was centered on her brother and that meeting with Crawford about their cousin. The letter was the confirmation of her foreboding. Something was happening with Devlin; something good maybe ... or something bad, as she had dreamed it.

"Devlin lost the Jousting Tournament," Yami said, catching her attention.

"He lost?" she asked, not believing. "That's impossible."

"Impossible but true. And please, stop saying impossible that you remind me of Kaiba."

"I'm a Kaiba." she smiled. "That's our favorite word and you just repeated it twice, Yami."

"Oh, yes?" Yami said defiantly. "Well, the Moto favorite word is ..."

He didn't finish the sentence because Joey entered the room running, followed by Tristan. They approached Yami and after taking a deep breath Joey said:

"Mr. Kaiba has returned."

Tea got up quickly and she headed for the door, intrigued. Before leaving, she heard her husband say:

"Such news."

But he also left the room followed by the other two. Outside they saw the wagon stop. Seto went down and then a girl with white hair descended. Tea was very surprised, but still walked as far as her brother was. Yami was still with his eyes and mouth open; and his servants imitated him. Kaiba walked to his sister followed by Salomon and the albina girl.

"Seto, what did Crawford tell you?" then she looked at the other girl and said, "What happened to Devlin?"

"He died," he said dryly, shrugging his shoulders. "His servants beheaded him."

"Oh! My God!"

"And that's not all. They burned his castle, its grounds and everything he had there..." he stopped when he realized his sister didn't take her eyes from the other girl and he cleared: "She is Rouxx Anne, Devlin's widow."

"Oh ..." was the only thing that Tea could say, thunderstruck as she was.

Yami walked over to them and looked at the woman for a few seconds. Then he looked at his brother-in-law and said,

"She will stay with us, won't she, Kaiba?"

Seto only nodded and he advanced toward the castle, not without first ordering Solomon to prepare a room for the young woman.

Tea along with an inexplicably angry Solomon took Rouxx Anne to the room. It wasn't a very big bedroom, but it was neat. Apart from the bed, there were two little candle tables, each one on each side of the bed, a wardrobe and a piano in front. What the albina most liked was that it had a large window.

"This room belonged to my sister-in-law," Tea said, "before getting married, of course.

"It's very pretty" said. She was too nervous, and she was afraid to talk and ruining everything.

"There are clothes in the closet. You can use them, yours has lost its useful life, don't you think?"

"Oh, yeah ..." she said, looking down at her white dress, now brown because the mud of the cell. "Thank you."

"How is it that you're in such a condition?" Tea asked.

"Uh ... well. Some guys assaulted me when I was coming here" she said, remembering what Kaiba had told her to say when he had the idea of her impersonating someone else. She still didn't know why, but it was clear he wasn't really do it for her.

"That's awful!"

"We'd better let this Lady rest, Tea" Solomon said, trying to make sure that there were no more questions that could confuse her and make Mr. Kaiba's strange plan go wrong.

"Yes, you're right," she said, and looked at Rouxx Anne. "If you need anything just ask me, this is your house. "

She nodded and the other two came out of the room.

They both rode through the woods of Chester, as they used to do every morning, although this time they had to postpone it. Fortunately, Seto was not accompanied by the annoying presence of Yami and his grandfather. He was very glad of that situation. He already had too much by having to stand the Moto family in his castle, and only because his sister had the worst of the tastes. Only she was able to marry a Baron from a decaying clan. He still couldn't find out where his brother-in-law had gotten such a title, but he doubted about his nobility.

"When I grow up I want to be a Jousting Champion, as Yami is," he heard his brother say.

"Such pathetic goals you have, Mokuba."

"Oh, yes? What are supposed to be my great goals, Seto?"

"Well ..." he couldn't finish the sentence because a wild black horse with green eyes crossed his path. Green eyes?

Kaiba's horse raised its front legs and Seto fell to the ground abruptly, a few meters from where the animal was.

Mokuba got down and approached his brother who was trying to get up. He had hit his head and back against a rock and it hurt too much. The boy tried to help him but as soon as he leaned forward his eyes widened.

"Looks like you hit a huge stone, Seto."

"I'll kill that horse," he said as he rested his hand on the rock to rise himself once and for all. But as soon as he felt the moisture of that object, he withdrew his hand. He saw it and he was paralyzed: it was full of blood.

"Seto, you're bleeding too much" Mokuba said. "Stay here, I'll go for help."

"No way, Mokuba. I can stand, it's just a cut" he said, although standing up took him three tries, and when he did, he stumbled. Mokuba came to his side and helped him to keep his balance. Seto looked around but there was no trace of the animal; It had already vanished.


	4. Chapter 4

**Earls of Chester**

**C****hapter**** IV****: **

Solomon left the castle to go in search of the mail in the town. Rex was in charge of delivering home telegrams, but any kind of different assignment had to be withdrawn at his grandmother's place.

He was very worried about the girl they had met that morning and who was staying with them now. While he couldn't say why Kaiba had decided to help her, he had some suspicion of what might be happening. He wished that girl wasn't a rat, though he remembered what had happened and he doubted it.

Kaiba stepped into the wagon while still looking at the bench. He could have sworn he had seen the carpet move. To feel laughter ... to see things move ... He was going crazy. Or not…

He crouched beside the bench and he lifted the rug.

"What the hell…?"

Kaiba's shout caused Solomon to stop the wagon abruptly and he managed to get Seto to hit his forehead against the edge of the seat. The old man got out of the carriage and ran the curtain to see what was happening. He found the chestnut leaning against the wall and rubbing his forehead. But he was pushed by a white long-haired girl who wanted to run out of the wagon. In spite of his age, Solomon had the reflexes enough to take her of the wrist with great strength and prevent that she escaped.

"Seems like you were right and you were not insane, Seto"

"You meant Lord Kaiba" he warned as he descended, adjusting his fringes. "What I can't explain is how she could enter without being noticed, when I asked you to stay and watch."

Well, that was a very direct indirect. But what did he want? He was either a driver or a security employee. Both at the same time neither dream it. He would already teach that boy to have respect for misters of experience like him. He looked at the floor and said:

"I'm sorry, Lord Kaiba."

"Forget it," was the answer he got. Seto looked at the girl, obviously waiting for an explanation. "What were you doing hiding there?"

"I…"

"Seto, it's clear she came in when you were meeting Crawford. If she hides it is because she is fleeing from justice. I myself noticed that the officers were desperately searching for someone. She must be a delinquent."

"That's not true!" the girl protested, trying to break free.

"I believe you," Kaiba told him.

"Oh, yes?" asked Solomon, his eyes narrowed and his face close to Kaiba. He was angry. Was that girl's word better than his?

"Of course," Seto smirked at Salomon, then he turned his look back to her. "But to help you we need to know the truth." He stared into her eyes, trying to get her to trust him. She nodded and he continued. "Tell us if you were fleeing from Crawford."

She nodded again, and that triggered Solomon's anger.

"I told you, Kaiba." He looked completely out of control, too angry. "All we'll do for you is return you to the cell you escaped from!"

"Alright..." Kaiba scratched his head. The girl opened her eyes in surprise; hadn't Kaiba said he would help her? "... I think I know how to help you."

"That you know what ?!"

Well, that's the way it was. Seto must have something against Crawford. He always got into trouble where he was involved.

He reached the post house and entered. Donna, the woman who attended it was about fifty years old, she had a blond hair that still retained its sheen despite the passage of time. Her blue eyes widened as she saw Mr. Mouto enter the house and smiled.

"Mr. Solomon, good morning."

"How are you, Lady Donna? I came for the mail ... Is there something for us?"

"I think so ... Let me see ..." she went to a cabinet of many drawers and she opened one which had got the inscription Kaiba/Mouto. She took out two envelopes and returned to the counter. "There is one for his grandson who arrived this morning and another for Count Kaiba who was brought yesterday."

"Let's see," he said taking them and checking them, he wanted to see if any of them were from Roux Anne, the real one. And he was right, that woman had sent a telegram to Kaiba. He had to read it ... even though Donna was a witness.

"Will you open it?" she asked, frowning at him.

"I have to," Solomon replied, breaking the envelope. He read it and said: "It can't be…"

"What happens?"

"Nothing," Solomon said, putting the mail in his coat pocket. "Donna, if someones asks when those telegrams arrived, say they were sent today, please."

"Okay, but ..."

She couldn't say anything else. The old man had left the shop quickly. He got into the wagon and drove at full speed.

Seto was very worried and it was not because of the strong pain of the wound on his back or the dizziness caused by the blow to his head. Where the hell had that animal come from? He knew very well all the horses in his stable, and that did not belong to him. In addition, because of his knowledge of zoology, which was basic, he knew the horses had no green, blue or sky blue eyes.

He didn't know who the animal's owner was, but he would find the him and get rid of both.

It didn't take much to reach the house. And that was good, he still had other problems to solve.

Joey entered the room running, followed by Tristan and Tea felt a chill run down her back. It was the second time on the day they entered that way and seeing the antecedents -not only of that day, but also others -, it was not a good sign.

"And now what's happening?" Yami asked, quite disturbed too.

"Mr. Kaiba is back and …"

"Joey:"Yami said in a loud and hard tone, clearly annoyed, "you don't have to enter like this every time Kaiba returns to the castle. Otherwise, you can pack your things to get out of here. Same goes for you, Tristan."

"But Mr. Kaiba is wounded!" Tristan shouted desperately.

"What?"

Tea ran out of the castle. When she got outside, she saw his younger brother help Seto get off the horse. She kept approaching, and when she reached, she took his arm to support him. She quickly realized that his whole back was stained with blood.

"What happened, Seto?" she asked as Tristan and Joey stood beside her.

"Nothing, I just fell off the horse."


	5. Chapter 5

**Earls of**** Chester:**

**C****hapter**** V****: **

Solomon was driving the wagon. By the movements of his body, he seemed to want to increase the speed he was traveling by pushing with it forward. It couldn't take much longer. He needed to arrive the castle fast; he didn't bring good news for Kaiba, and the situation could become a problem involving his grandson.

Was it worth giving up the peace that the family had been living in for years just to help this girl who was most likely a delinquent?

_As soon as I see "Lord Kaiba," I will demand him that he tell me the true motives for deciding to do this madness ... And better if this are convincing!_

Solomon could not help but think that the idea of pretending that the young girl was Roux Anne was nothing more than a whim of Seto. He had meditated a lot on it, and the truth was that he had not found any other reason why. Not that Kaiba was an person easily understood.

When he reached the entrance to the castle, he left the wagon in care of Tristan, who planned to return the horses of Seto and Mokuba to the barn. Solomon ran to the door, leaving the brown-haired young man with the word in his mouth. Tristan wanted to tell him something, but nothing could be more important.

As he entered the room at high speed, Serenity was startled and threw the valuable vase she was cleaning. The girl screamed and began to sob, her salary would never reach to pay for that.

Yami and Tea left Kaiba's room followed by a man dressed in dark green, with short black hair and blue eyes. Solomon recognized him. It was Shaadi, the county doctor. What he didn't understand was what he could be doing there...

"Grandfather," Yami said. "You came back ..."

"What does Shaadi do here?"

"Good morning, Mr. Moto," said the doctor with his usual calm expression, the only one his clients knew. They had never seen him laugh and they had never seen him angry.

"He came because ..." Taea couldn't finish telling him the reason for his visit because Yami interrupted her, curious.

"Grandfather, did you get something for me in the mail?"

He approached the old man with his eyes fixed on the pockets of his raincoat.

"Here" Solomon said, handing him the telegram. Then he added: "I have one for Kaiba ... Where is he?"

"He's resting," his grandson replied as he read the message. It was from the blacksmith, he had already made his new armor for the next tournament and invited him to go and see it.

"Where?"

"In the smithy, by the way Henry II, grandfather. It is next to the ..."

"Seto is resting in a blacksmith?" asked his confused grandfather.

Yami looked at him confused too; he didn't even know what they were talking about now.

"He's in his bedroom, grandfather," Tea said for her husband.

"Call him! I have to give it to him urgently, besides talking to him."

Yami looked at him confused too; he didn't even know what they were talking about now.

"He's in his bedroom, grandfather," Tea said for her husband.

"Call him! I have to give it to him urgently, besides talking to him."

"But... he's resting, Mr. Moto," said the brown-haired woman, completely astonished. We can not bother him because today..."

"Well, I'll do it," he decided. If they were afraid of the terrible character of the Earl, he wasn't. Besides, what he had to tell him was extremely important. He walked to the desk door, but Yami stepped in front, blocking his way. "Yami, I have to talk to Kaiba, it's urgent."

"Grandfather, Tea said you can't. He is resting since ..."

"It's very urgent!" he shouted desperately. Were they deaf or foolish?

"Well, I understand," Yami said, crossing his arms and rubbing his chin. "Let me see that telegram. I'll take care of whatever it is. We can not bother Kaiba now, Grandpa" and he held out his hand to receive the message.

Solomon took two hesitant steps back. Maybe it was better to tell the whole truth to his grandson and put Kaiba in his place ...

_Or not, better. I don't want to run out of family._

"I can't show it to you, Yami. It's about something confidential so I have to talk to Kaiba personally."

"Grandfather, if it's confidential: how the hell do you know about it?"

There were several stunned cries from the room that deprived him from resting. He paid no attention to what they said, but he would have heard them even being a deaf man, he was sure of that.

He guessed that it was time for dinner, between seven and eight. Then he remembered that this was the hour Mr. Mouto returned from the village with the mail almost every day. Maybe Devlin's widow had sent a telegram indicating when she would arrive.

He wasn't sure what to do then, but he was aware that the appearance of the girl with white hair and blue eyes had complicated things. His idea of helping her made things difficult. He himself had gotten himself into a problem that could be very serious.

Not that Seto Kaiba was the kind of person willing to help anyone. It could be said that, without exception of his brothers, he rarely helped others. Even he couldn't remember the last thing he did for someone else.

This was unusual. The moment he saw that woman, he felt something different and strange. Then, not now, he had the feeling that in her he could find something important: answers, but he did not know about what.

Because that was exactly what he felt, nothing more. However, he recalled the situation and he thought it was the most illogical and absurd thing that can be felt. How can you be sure that someone you don't know has the answer to something you don't know either?

_Nonsense._

Although now he was beginning to regret his decision, what was done is done. He had to take action with what could happen. The past could not be changed ... And he had no interest in doing so, even though he still couldn't admit it to himself.

What he had to figure out was why the girl was running from the authorities. Who was? What had she done?

_She doesn't look like a delinquent._

Seto considered himself capable of recognizing criminals. Come on, there's a reason why he couldn't stand Crawford.

"I'll have to ask," he murmured as he got up.

"If I don't talk to Kaiba right now," the old man said, controlling his anger, "you'll be very sorry, Yami."

"But Grandpa ... Seto is ..."

"Behind you," he said.

"Kaiba, the letter you were expecting has arrived," said Solomon.

Seto looked at him and realized that the news had to be bad for him to be so upset. He nodded and said:

"Let's talk in the desk."

"Kaiba, you have to rest," interrupted Shaadi serenely.

"Tell me, doctor," said Kaiba, "are you paid for the visit?"

After Shaadi nodded, Seto shook his hand and he accompanied him (rather pushed him) to the exit.

"Come on," he said, turning to Solomon and walking toward the desk. But he stopped when he saw the maid and said. "Stop crying and clean that mess once for all, Serenity. It isn't so much, it was just a horrid vase that someone with bad taste gave to Tea on the day of her wedding. We're not going to charge you. What's more, we'd have to give you a raise for getting rid of something so awful" he laughed.

"Oh no! My vase!"


	6. Chapter 6

**Earls of Chester:**

**C****hapter**** VI****:**

Tea went upstairs to Rouxx Anne's room. It was dinner time and she had not seen that woman since afternoon. She could have been resting, she had told her how badly she had passed while coming to Cheshire and she must have been exhausted. The best thing would be to bring the food to the room. That's what Tea was going to propose her.

She opened the door and looked around the room. The bedroom was completely empty, as it had been until that day. As inert as these and other rooms had been since her sister-in-law had died, as cold as her brother.

_Maybe she didn't like this room ... I wouldn't have agreed to stay here either. I don't know what I was thinking when I offered it to her_ she told himself as she went out to find her somewhere else in the castle. But as she turned, she felt the strong night wind blow against her back. Tea looked back and saw that the window was open.

_I'm such a fool. She must be in the bathroom. If she wasn't using the room why would leave the window open._

She went down the stairs to the living room and stopped at the end of it, frowning. Her mature husband tried to listen to the conversation Seto and Grandpa had. As Yami was looking away he did not see her approaching from behind but he heard her footsteps.

"Serenity," he whispered, thinking it was his maid who was also in the room. "Bring me a glass."

The girl looked at the Countess without knowing whether she had to obey or not. Tea nodded and she went to get the glass. She returned instantly. Yami was still in the same location and his wife too. Serenity was going to give Mr. Moto the glass, but her boss took it out of her hands.

"Here's the glass, Yami," she whispered amusedly.

He jumped back and he stood watching her with eyes and mouth open, surprised that he had been found with his hands in the dough by his wife. That was really embarrassing.

"Tea..." he said without being able to get rid of his amazement yet.

"I'm not going to ask what you're doing because it's pretty clear. But stop acting like an old rabble!"

"It's not that," Yami said nervously as he smiled and scratched the back of his neck. Then he took her by the shoulders and with a serious expression said: "But Grandpa and Kaiba are dealing with a confidential matter." He brought his face closer to hers, and with huge eyes asked: "Do you understand what that means?"

"Which it does not involve you" Tea rebuked him.

Yami shook his head.

"Kaiba always makes sinister plans and if my grandfather is involved, that means he's in danger. That is why this matter concerns me as well. I will not let your brother abuse my poor grandfather!"

"You're exaggerating," she said as she turned and walked to the couch. She sat up and looked at him, smiling. "You act like an old rabble. But hey, listen if you want ... You will only find out that you make ridiculous assumptions."

Yami shrugged and said,

"As you say" and put his ear back against the door.

She looked out the window and saw the old man and Kaiba in the room. She could hear what they said and that was good: she was really interested in that conversation because she would probably know why the man, who now she knew he was one of the Counts of Chester, wanted to keep her in the castle.

She had never believed that he would help her in the way she needed; she knew very well the kind of people who lived in Cheshire and it was clear that no one would help her unless they needed her, as it was the case.

"She says she'll be there in two days" said the young castle owner, taking a seat and fixing his eyes on the ceiling. It had not crossed his mind that this woman could arrive so soon. He thought he would have at least a week to work out a good plan to get rid of her. But now things had been complicated.

"What are you going to do?" Solomon asked, leaning against the desk.

"I don't know."

"You have to get rid of the runaway girl, Seto. Keeping her here will do nothing more than bring you problems and complicate things."

Kaiba rubbed his chin thoughtfully and Solomon thought he was considering his proposal. It would be very silly if he did not.

"I told you to not call me Seto ..."

"This is important!" Solomon shouted furiously. "It's not just your problem, it involves us all. So stop worrying about trifles and find a solution to this ... please - he added when he noticed the mutations that the young Earl's face suffered during his sermon: surprised, irritated, psychopathic, murderer and now he wore one that was the mixture of all of the above.

"Don't talk to me like that ever again" he threatened.

There was a moment where Kaiba simply think of a plan for postpone the arrival of Rouxx Anne.

"Why don't you tell Yami and Tea the truth and hire that girl as a maid?" Mr. Moto suggested.

Seto stared at him. That was a good solution if Rouxx were a nice person whom he wanted to stay in his castle. But the woman was a viper, and with her his family was in danger. Crawford had received a letter from her, stating that the death of her husband had been at the hands of the peasants who were not content with the treatment. The judge could have believed this story easily, but he knew this woman and he was convinced that in the original version of the facts she was the one who played the role of the peasants.

"It would be a good choice if that did not force me to have to host Rouxx Anne here. That's not what I want."

"Why? Did you ever convince yourself that this girl is Rouxx Anne?"

"No" the earl laughed. "She is not a blood sucker snake like that woman.

"Sure," Solomon said, waving his hands. That was the last straw. "She is a delinquent who is fugitive and who knows if she is a rat or a criminal ..."

"She's not a criminal."

"And how do you know?"

"Anyone would realize that, she is incapable of killing an ant."

"Aren't there other reasons why you are helping her?" the old man asked. Kaiba looked at him confused. "She's not an ugly girl ..."

A laugh echoed through the desk. Was Solomon crazy?

"I would never be interested in a beggar like 's just..."

Well, her interest in that stupid dialogue had come to an end.

Pordiosera? She was richer than any of the people who lived in that castle. Her wealth was not money, but other things that would make happy anyone who possessed them. Sure, they could not be seen or touched, just felt. And feelings could not be priced, they could not be negotiated. For that very reason, the habitants of that county no longer remembered its existence.

But all right, the beggar was not going to bother any more. She did not need his supposed help, while Kaiba did need her because it seemed he couldn't reverse his plans. Unfortunately for the Count, she was not going to occupy Roux Anne's place any longer.

Kaiba opened the desk door to find Yami crouched and with a glass stuck to his ear.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"Eh ... I came to tell you that we are going to have dinner," Yami replied nervously.

Seto looked at Solomon and said to him,

"I see why he's your grandson. Always getting into things which don't concern him." Then he looked at his brother-in-law and said "You weren't listening to our conversation ... were you?"

"Of course not!" the baron shouted, apparently offended. "I do not care what you talk to my grandfather, Kaiba.

"Sure"

Seto went to the dining room and when he was already far away Yami took advantage of the occasion.

"What did he say, grandfather? Kaiba wants to kill Rouxx Anne?"

Solomon laughed and went to where the others were followed by his curious and Serenity set the table while the first was talking with her brother.

"She must be in her room and I think she will not come down to dinner."

"How do you know?"

"Because today I went up to his room to ask her if she wanted the food to come up, since I thought she would be resting."

— ¿Y te dijo que sí?

"Uf, Seto! She did not tell me anything because she wasn't in the room, okay?"

"And where was she then?"

-I don't know ... In the bathroom maybe. But she was going back to the room soon as she had the window open and ..."

"The window open?" Kaiba asked. She wouldn't have escaped ... would she?

"Hey" said Tea quite annoyingly. "If you have so much interest in knowing, why don't you go and take her dinner, dear brother?"

"I'll do that. What room is she in?"

"Well…"

Tea was beginning to believe that she had been wrong in choosing the room. At the moment she had not imagined the reaction that Seto could have when he knew, but she no longer doubted that it would not be good.

Kaiba, noticing her sister's silence, her sister's nerves, and the simple fact that she was not looking at him, immediately understood the answer to his question. And although he was angry, it was one of his virtues to control his impulses. He had more important things to do than discuss it with Tea.

"We'll talk about this," Seto said, sprinting up the stairs to the living room. That woman couldn't go, Crawford should be looking for her.

"Hey, Seto! You forget the dish" his younger brother told him.

Kaiba se detuvo al inicio de la escalera murmurando algunas cosas desagradables. Regresó al comedor y se llevó el plato que Mokuba sostenía muy sonriente, todo esto en menos de diez segundos. Volvió a subir las escaleras hasta el cuarto de su difunta esposa.

It was true, the room was empty and the window was open. He went over to it and ran the curtain. It was clear that she had run away.

_Oh, no ... You're not leaving._

He set the dish on the table and slid out the window, just as he used to when he was a teenager and he competed with his cousin to see who get first to the floor. Of course, in those days he did not have a painful and serious wound on his back, but he had no other choice. If he went out the front door he would probably raise suspicions.

Getting down did not cost him as much as he supposed, despite the years he had not lost the ability. He jumped off the wall and looked around. The castle was surrounded by a beautiful garden and behind were the fields, then the forest and finally the hills. It was not going to be easy to know where to start looking.

_If I were running away ... where would I hide? _he thought. Anyway, would she be hiding? After a few seconds of meditation, his eyes brightened._ The stable!_

He started walking there, but if she wasn't there, she must surely have entered the forest. And being so, it was a very brave attitude on her part. But maybe she would wait till the sun appeared to cross the forest.

When he was not more than ten steps from the barn, he stopped when he heard a strange noise coming from the forest on his left. It was like the grunting of canines...

_"We do not have a dog," _he said, turning to look at the trees.

It was too dark to see. All he could tell was the silhouette of a being approaching at full speed toward him. It was of medium size, black or perhaps the darkness of the night made it look like this, and its green eyes gleamed. One moment ... green eyes? Had not he seen them before?

The animal pounced on him, throwing him to the floor and threatening him with his sharp fangs.

"Seto! No!"


	7. Chapter 7

**Earls of Chester:**

**Chapter**** VII:**

The animal turned out to be a strange wolf specimen, its size was larger than a dog and its fangs were more frightening too. But in spite of how strange it looked like, its sudden appearance and some rare coincidences, Seto didn't have time to think about them. There were other priority issues, such as avoiding the friendly far-away cousin of the dogs biting him and, if possible, taking it off.

The first thing the wolf did was to pounce on his face and to keep it of being disfigured, Seto automatically folded his arms over it. That's why he didn't save himself from a few bites in them.

Seeing the animal attack him, the white-haired girl who had just come out of the stable looked around for something to help. Behind her, in a corner, there were piling tools piled up. Some of them could serve so she went running, took a long object with four sharp points at the bottom and she returned to where the wolf was.

She placed the object's points behind the animal's head and she breathed deeply before pushing down to embed them in the beast. But right then, to Seto's disgrace, he slid aside the head of the wolf that was about to bite his face and that caused that what was under the She placed the object's beaks behind the animal's head and she breathed deeply before pushing down to embed them in the beast. But right then, to Seto's disgrace, he slid aside the head of the wolf that was about to bite his face and that caused that what was under the sharp points of the tool was his left arm...

"Ouch!"

"I'm sorry," the alleged Roux Anne said , unclasping the tool from Seto's arm. She wasn't to blame, was she? She was just trying to help him.

The strange mammal removed himself from above Kaiba and it threatened the woman with his sharp canines. its fangs could be terrifying, but she had a weapon and she was willing to use it even though that animal was a unique specimen of its kind.

When the wolf came up to jump on her, the girl closed her eyes and she embedded the cutting edges of the tool in its chest. The animal gave a terrifying, chilling howl and both that white haired woman and Kaiba could swear that there was something human about it.

The poor wolf ran away, still howling, and it got lost in the trees. But the girl didn't stop to staring the place where it had gone with a frown. There was something strange about that wolf, there was no bleeding when she struck it with the rake...

Then her attention returned to Kaiba. He did have blood on his left arm. She crouched beside him and said,

"Stay here, I'll go to the castle to get some help," and then she stand up to leave.

Seto opened his eyes in alarm. Was she going to go away and leave him alone at the mercy of any other animal that could came to attack him? Oh no. He wasn't going to stay there.

"Wait," he said as he tried to get up but as he laid his arm on the floor he realized he did not feel it. His back, his head and his other arm hurt too. She was already far away and even if he screamed her name she would not listen to him. And he didn't know her name either.

"I'll have to ask her," he murmured.

Well, waiting for help was going to be less painful but rather perturbing

"I can't believe what you're saying" Yami was amazed at Mokuba's story. "I didn't know there existed any of that kind."

"Me neither. In fact, I didn't see it very well but Seto did. He told me."

"It's incredible …"

"Well, I'm going back to my room; I'm very sleepy and I'm exhausted. "Tea got up and went up the stairs to her room. Yami kept watching her as he reflected on her attitude. When she entered the bedroom, she slammed the door and immediately the door of the room which was three entrances later opened.

Roux Anne ran out, and with that speed she went down the stairs, she stood by the table facing all those who were sitting there waiting for her to report the reason for her agitation and she said:

"Seto is hurt. A wolf attacked him, I just saw it by the window."

"Where?" Mokuba said as he stood up immediately and approached her, reacting faster than Yami.

"Outside, near the stable."

The youngest of the Earls of Chester ran out of the castle followed by the young woman and Yami a few steps, who was back still bewildered. What was Kaiba doing near the stable when he had gone to deliver Roux Anne's food to the room? Besides, he had not seen him leaving. If he had used the door he would have crossed the dining room. Had he gone out by the window or was there a secret door he didn't know?

"I don't understand why he left when the doctor said he could not go out"

Mokuba was already a few feet away from his brother. When he reached his side, he fell on him and embraced him, but Seto did not move, spoke, blinked, and Mokuba had some doubts that he had breathed. "Seto, react!" he shouted, grabbing him by the shoulders and shaking him, the tears were about to slip down his cheek.

Kaiba frowned, opened one of his eyes and said,

"If you think this isn't painful I can do the same to you so you realize how wrong you are."

"You're alive!" Mokuba said, embracing him again, ignoring his brother's familiar sarcasm. Then he asked, "Why didn't you react?"

_Because I was in the middle of a deep meditation to ignore the fear I had while I he was served on a silver tray to the jaws of any wild animal._

"I was sleeping," he said, rolling his eyes.

"And those wounds in your arm? How big were the wolf's fangs?" Mokuba looked at the floor and he surprised; he got up and stood by the rake watching it. "What does this tool do here? "He bent down and his eyes and mouth opened too much." There's blood! Seto, didn't you got hurt with this? "And without waiting for his brother to respond, he deduced."Then it was a person who struck you like that!"

Roux Anne turned to one side as she stared up at the already dark sky; Seto was left unanswered by his brother's surprising capacity for deduction, and Yami only nodded, fully in agreement with Mokuba. He looked at Kaiba to see his explanation but the adorable earl did not react and that was quite annoying. When his exasperation was maximum and irrepressible, he approached the brown haired man and took him by the neck of the clothes.

"Did someone stole from you? Did an intruder come in and attack you? Was there someone in Roux Anne's room who fled through the window, you saw him when you went to leave the food and you followed him here, but when you reached him he struck you with that thing, SETO? Speak at once!"

If Seto didn't have some problems to move his arms Yami would have already received a good blow in the mouth, maybe he would close it at once. But he couldn't do it, unfortunately he was defenseless against his unbearable brother-in-law and that was humiliating.

"I don't know ... I'm confused ..."

"So you left that plate in my room," Rouxx Anne interrupted. She looked at the young Baron and told him: "I saw a wolf attacking him, maybe someone hurt him when I left the room to look for you. It will be the best to take him inside."

"Yes, let's go, Kaiba. Inside you will explain everything. I'll tell Joey to go get the doctor."


	8. Chapter 8

**Earls of**** Chester:**

**C****hapter**** VIII:**

The young Mokuba was in the main room, sitting in one of the chairs positioned in front of the door. His eyes were fixed on the main entrance, he wanted the doctor to come soon and take care of his brother at once.

Serenity had stood by the stairs pretending to clean some of the ornaments. But she actually thought about how to help the boy so he wouldn't be so nervous. However, she wasn't the most indicated since she was a concern victim as well. If that animal that had attacked Lord Kaiba was nearby, his brother was in danger too because he had gone to find the doctor in his own house.

The door opened and Joey hurried inside. He crossed the room at great speed toward Kaiba's room and without even looking back, he said, shaken by the race:

"Please, follow me here."

Mokuba and Serenity watched him. When they could no longer see him, they turned their eyes toward the door, but no one was following him and that was strange.

Mokuba walked to the entrance to confirm if someone was actually coming or not. Halfway to the castle, Shaadi was approaching slowly, as quietly as if Seto had all the time in the world to wait for him. Between step and step he took a few seconds to appreciate the sky, the garden, the floor, the castle, his hands ...

"He's a fool," said Mokuba before biting his lip and shaking his head.

As Serenity didn't understand the comment, she went to the door and she watched the reason for his anger. The County doctor was a man who had a good healthy in every aspect and he cared to enjoy it at every moment, as if they were his last. However, in circumstances such as that in which they urged that his arrival were immediate, that habitual slowness could be interpreted as a tease.

"Where is Shaadi?"

Yami was behind them and he looked at the road. As the doctor approached, Yami passed between the two youngs and walked towards him.

When only a few meters separated them, he said:

"Hurry up, Shaadi! Seto is making an unbearable scandal."

Shaadi stopped in front of him, looked at Yami and he raised his eyebrow a bit surprised. It was not easy to imagine Kaiba gets tantrums. That was for Mokuba ... or for Yami too.

"Let's go and see him," he said at the same time his eyebrow was falling to its usual place.

Upon reaching the entrance Mokuba and Serenity went to Kaiba's room and the other two followed.

Seto was sitting on the edge of the bed and kicking the wall with each one of his legs in turns.

Roux Anne was looking at a picture hanging on the wall. As soon as she had entered that room that painting caught her attention. There were some strange coincidences ...

"Here is Shaadi," Yami said, coming in behind Mokuba and Serenity who stood next to Solomon, who was in the room as well. His grandson stood by the door. "It's a good thing he came so soon, since he's the only one capable of telling Kaiba he must cut off his arm" and he looked at his brother-in-law with a bad intentioned smile. "Isn't it right, doctor?"

Kaiba just ignored him; he couldn't stand his brother-in-law, and a person so annoying didn't deserve the least attention from his part. Unfortunately, he would have to stand him at home for the rest of his life. He looked at Shaadi, waiting for him to do something. Didn't he come to take care of him?

"It's possible. We must see how serious these wounds are," he said as he slowly opened his briefcase, he slowly pulled out his instruments and he slowly turned to see the Earl. "Although if you had an accident in your house surely there will be nothing to worry about. Because I suppose you paid attention to me and you didn't get out of here, did you?"

If there was anything that Kaiba disliked about Shaadi, it was that although his face would never change its expression, his eyes were always showing his mood: when he was angry, when he was happy, when he was surprised ... or revealed his intentions: when he reproached something, when he made fun of someone. At that moment his eyes said that he was making fun of him.

Besides the question was unnecessary; Joey had gone to look for him and it wasn't necessary to know the blonde boy deeply to know that he had opened his mouth. So Shaadi clearly knew what had happened to him.

"Come on, Kaiba," Yami said, taking the latch, "tell Shaadi what happened, where it happened and who is to blame." Then he opened the door and left the room.

He went upstairs to tell Tea what had happened to her brother. He had a feeling she was worried. There were cases where the connection between the relatives was so strong that they could sense when they were in danger. And he was sure that his wife had that kind of bond with both Seto and Mokuba.

He opened the door of his bedroom, the light was still on. Tea was probably waiting to come and tell him what had happened.

He looked at the bed and the expression on his face changed completely: his eyebrows curved, his confused eyes fixed on Tea and his mouth opened in disbelief. There were some strange things about her attitude. It was eight and half at night, too early to go to bed.

And although that could be explained in case she had not slept enough or she was very tired, the previous day she had been lying down at almost the same time. In fact, it had already been more than two weeks since she kept claiming an exaggerated sleep. No. There was something else there.

He walked over to the bed and sat down beside her, brushing her hair from her face and he watched her sleep. Maybe it was best that Tea had an appointment with the doctor. He had not the faintest idea of what could be happening, but whatever it was, no matter how insignificant it was, he was going to discover it.


	9. Chapter 9

**Earls**** of Chester:**

**Chapter**** IX****:**

After Shaadi had finished examining Kaiba, Solomon and Mokuba accompanied him to the exit and Mokuba ordered to Joey and Tristan to take the doctor to his house in the cart for better safety.

Serenity went to the kitchen to accommodate the remains of the dinner because it was clear that none of her employers would return to conclude it after what had happened. Worst of all, she would have to discard more than half of the food she had prepared a few hours earlier, and she could not help but feel exploited in such circumstances. If only her brother were there to don't waste it.

Seto remained in the room, a bit irritated by Shaadi's comments about his disobedience, his supposed childish attitude and his near death assured. Kaiba thought the doctor had to deal with his wounds with his mouth shut and don't lecture him during the entire visit as if he were his father.

_No, my mother _he thought funny. Shaadi was the living image of a forbidding and worried mother. If he weren't so only dumb he would do a great favor to humanity. And that would benefit him: having two daily consultations with an Earl could make him rich._ Doctors would have to realize that being such a moralists is unhealthy_ he thought.

That day had been very strange and exhausting. It had been, undoubtedly, the third worst day of his life. Although if he referred only to his physical discomfort, it was the first. Attacked by a horse, attacked by a wolf, attacked by that woman ... That woman who continued in her room standing before a painting that brought back very bad memories. But that never meant he wanted to get rid of it.

"What were you doing in the stable?" he asked suddenly, making her startle.

She turned slowly, her eyes wide with surprise, nerves, and lack of ideas for a compelling answer.

She cursed herself for not having gone when others had left the room. She had been very stupid and now she would have to explain herself because of her stupidity. Seto was waiting for an answer but she could not think of any.

Besides, she did not know why he had left the castle. Had he gone to look for her because he noticed that she had escaped? In that case she could write down his second recklessness: it would have been far better to wait until all of them slept to escape and not to do so when they were having dinner and they were obviously going to look for her.

"I'm sorry about your arm," was the first thing she could think of to say. She still could not answer his question, not until she knew if Kaiba was aware that she intended to leave.

"No, don't worry," Kaiba said with a shrug. "Thanks to you I lost the sensibility in it and that's why I don't feel pain" he clarified while not taking his eyes off , with such a neutral look that the young woman didn't know if the Earl was being ironic or if he simply told the truth because he was direct and his words did not hide second intentions.

But she didn't know what to think. Around her he had behaved in a considerably kind way compared to the deal he had with Mr. Solomon or that young man named Yami. However, behind her back he called her a beggar. Was Kaiba an hypocrite?

_All the inhabitants of Chester are ..._

"Why thanks to me? Do you mean it was my fault that creature attacked you?"

"Yes, it was," Kaiba said, nodding.

She frowned, that man couldn't be more ungrateful. Yes, she had hurt him with that tool but it was accidentally, she was just trying to help him and also nothing would have happened if he hadn't had the bad idea to put his arm in the place where the wolf's head had been before. Therefore, part of the fault belonged to Kaiba or both were responsible for those wounds.

Of course he was an hypocrite, instead of having said something like: 'No, you just tried to help me' or 'Don't worry, it was an accident' and even 'You're wrong, it was my fault.' But no…

"If you had not tried to escape, none of this would have happened," Kaiba finished with his accusing eyes on her.

The girl blinked once ... two ... three times. And then another. Then he did know that she was escaping ...From that perspective Kaiba was right and she was totally to blame. But she handled another point of view: it had all started the moment Kaiba decided to involve her in his , use her in his plans.

"I was leaving because I know that they should be looking for me and the sooner I move away from here, the better for me," she explained.

"You're wrong," Seto told her. "It's so obvious that your first option would be to flee away. That is something the authorities know and the first thing Crawford will do is to look for you in the neighboring counties and alert the security of these. However, they will never look for you here. You should better stay."

The white-haired girl nodded, acknowledging that Kaiba had a point. However, she had to find her tribe, she couldn't hide there forever. She had to tell her people that she was no longer locked up.

Kaiba's lips drew a grimace of conformity on his face. He had managed to convince her, and she wouldn't escape again. All he must do was to figure out a plan to get rid of Rouxx Anne. The real one.

"Why do you want to help me?" The girl's voice brought him out of his reasoning.

"I already told you" he replied, but she shook her head and that puzzled him.

"You told me why I should accept your help, but not why you offer it to me. Is it because you want me to stay to continue pretending that I am ... Rouxx Anne?"

Seto got up from the bed and walked over to where she was, nodding.

"It's because I need you," he confessed, his gaze fixed on her dark blue eyes as his right hand brushed one of her cheeks.

"Kaiba, Shaadi has already left with Joey and Tristan in the wagon," Solomon informed him from the door. The old man looked at him with a frown, and she took the opportunity to leave the room.

After the girl left, Mr. Moto looked at Kaiba with wide, speculative eyes. The Earl of Chester went to the door and closed it, annoyed by the stupid insinuations of the old Solomon, which deep inside his mind they didn't seem so stupids.

* * *

A/N: Yeah, I suck at romance. That's why this is an adventure story over all. Sorry, I hate myself so bad haha.


	10. Chapter 10

**Earls of Chester:**

**Chapter X:**

It was Thursday, there were just three days left for Cheshire to come back to life and for its habitants to enjoy the evenings witnessing the Regional Jousting Championship. It was a tournament whose participation was limited to the noble class, the rest of the population couldn't compete. However, they were allowed to observe the duels; of course, at a considerable distance from the local aristocracy, especially the Earls.

For the past three years the event had aroused great expectation among spectators only for one reason: they all wanted to see who would be the knight able of beating the Chester Champion: Yami Moto. The young Baron had remained on the podium for five consecutive years, and lately his seemingly more fearsome rivals, those with an admirable reputation, had meant no difficulty to him. Challengers who had achieved great fan support ended up disillusioning all of them. The only one Yami had considered as a strong opponent -although the spectators didn't think the same- was Rafael Carlington, who had started the match in a big way and had managed to get two spears up. However, in the end Yami knocked him down from his horse, getting the three points that meant victory and the conservation of the title.

Carlington's defeat in the previous tournament had been a very hard blow for those who wanted to see the end of Moto supremacy in that sport. Once the young competitor had been eliminated from the shortlist of the championship aspirants, the hopes of seeing the Baron dethroned had almost completely vanished, and the spectators had no choice but to accept that Yami was the best and no one born in Chester was capable of defeating him.

But that situation changed considerably when news spreads about the son of the Judge, Bakura J. Crawford would return to his homeland to compete in the Regional Tournament with hopes of winning the title of Champion. This new had awakened the illusion recently buried and the young man already had many fans in his favor.

Bakura had achieved the title of champion in a tournament carried out in the County of Dorset and, although the championship was not very relevant in the Kingdom, it was an antecedent to take into account. The young knight would not arrive in Chester until Friday; however the support with which he counted was already felt in his absence.

Sir Pegasus J. Crawford was very proud of the expectation that his eldest son had aroused in great part of his countrymen and he didn't doubt that they wouldn't be disappointed again. His son was, without a doubt, the most capable of being victorious and defeating Yami Moto once and for all.

He thought about this as he went to his office and on the way he witnessed the enthusiasm that competition caused in the younger ones, who already had painted on their faces the symbols of their favorite knights and played to themselves. He smiled at the situation, when he was a child he was entertained like that, just like Bakura in his childhood. In those days, many years ago, he hadn't imagined that he would be responsible for enforcing justice in the County and how risky that might be. Luckily all the dark spots that this profession carried were already buried forever because that day he would get rid of the only remaining trace of them. Then he wouldn't take more risks and he could enjoy in peace the time he would spend with his wife and son.

When he was a few meters from the entrance of the court he saw that one of the soldiers on guard at the entrance looked very impatient. And when he realized that Crawford was coming he came quickly and stopped just a step away from him.

"Sir, I regret to inform you that the prisoner had escaped ..."

"What?!"

He could not believe it.

"She fled when we were moving her to trial…"

"Useless! Do not you understand that she is a messenger from Satan? Being free she won't hesitate to take revenge on us, idiots!" He said irritated as he entered his office where the other prisoner guards were located. They told him in detail everything that had happened during the previous day. "And what are you expecting to look for her, that I order it to you?" The eyes of the others opened wide, confirming that what he had just said was very true. "You shouldn't" he said sternly, so much ineffectiveness on the part of his employees made him mad. "You have to be prepared to take action even in my absence. It was stupid to have done nothing. You gave a very valuable time to that filthy, enough to get away what is necessary from here. She must already be in another county ... Warn the neighboring authorities and send a few men to the borders."

"Yes, sir," they said in unison, and they left the office, desperate to accomplish the order; they had to prove to the judge that they were not useless. Their job security depended on it.

Crawford threw himself into his seat. All he wanted to accomplish soon, other than finding that girl, was to relax. He could not believe how in a few seconds his mood could go from one end to the other, from his cheerful state of humor to his present expression of annoyance, insecurity and alertness. He was not worried about that woman's supposed alliance with Satan. Really, he'd never thought she handled dark powers. The only power she had was to know things that weren't convenient for him that they were made known. Her presence there for second time after a few years was a great threat, she still remembered him. The rumors among the people of the Cheshire ran very fast, and he could not allow his secret to be revealed, let alone to be heard by the most influential man in the place: the Earl of Chester. That's why he planned to get rid of her once and for all. And that plan had not changed: he would find her at any cost and silence her forever.

She got out of the wagon accompanied by her servant Allister and she met with Lord Von Schröeder, who was waiting for her at the entrance to Worcestershire Castle. He smiled at her and leaned over to kiss her hand.

"I'm very glad to see You here, Mrs. Rouxx Anne"

"The same I say, but it will only be for one day. I must continue my trip to Chester soon."

"Chester?" He asked a bit surprised, he would go there too. "May I know the reason for that travel?"

To take possession of what belongs to me the young woman with black hair and violet eyes thought.

"I'll go to visit the Earls of Chester, they were my husband's cousins, and he left something for them in his testament. Also, I want to be present at the Jousting Tournament that will start this weekend. Could you tell me who will participate?"

"I've heard that the same forever losers are competing: Carlington, Burthener, Ishtar, Underground, a few beginners ... But I assure you none of them will beat young Moto, although they say that Bakura Crawford will compete and he has some chances to win ..."

"¿Moto? ¿Yami Moto?"

"That's right, Countess. The five-time Cheshire Jousting Champion and second in the Kingdom Championship."

She turned to look at her servant and smiled as she said,

"Perfect."


	11. Chapter 11

**Earls of Chester**

**Chapter XI:**

Yami was on the back of the wagon driven by Tristan. He had just left Shaadi's house with who he had arranged a consultation for Tea after tea-time. His wife had him very worried. He wasn't sure whether he had dreamed or not, but in the morning he had seen his wife sitting on the bed with a rather hectic blow; scared maybe. He remembered no more, apart from a strong sense of tiredness in himself that prevented him from keeping his eyelids apart. He felt as if they weighed a lot, and he was sure that it wasn't due to sleep.

At that moment he was going to the blacksmith to collect the armor that he would look the weekend in the tournament. Then he would spend the rest of the afternoon looking for something that would surely cause a hit during the competition; even more than the fool Bakura had generated. No one imagined what he was planning.

He himself could not believe it. The story he'd heard from Mokuba the night before had surprised him a lot. It had never occurred to him that such an animal could exist. A black horse with green eyes? He had never seen anything like it in his life.

And Mokuba hadn't seen it either. It had been Kaiba who caught these strange details and told his brother. And so Yami did not discard that these rare characteristics of the animal were the product of the imagination of his traumatized brother-in-law, who could not accept that a simple horse had hurt him that way and so endowed his aggressor with so many peculiarities to exaggerate the threat that it had meant.

Even so, he had to erase his doubts by registering the county from end to end.

"Seto" Mokuba called as he entered the kitchen. His brother was standing by the table with his arms crossed and waiting for Serenity to finish making him a coffee. "Haven't you seen Yami?"

Kaiba shook his head even though he knew his brother-in-law had left early.

"He said he would take me to know the list field where preparations for the tournament are being made."

Serenity began to serve the coffee for Seto and two more cups because she planned to take Mr. Moto and Tea as well.

"I'm not really sure, but I think he went out," said his older brother, intending to get him angry with Yami for having supposedly forgotten his promises, "and I got the feeling he was going to be very busy. Don't you know if it's true, Serenity?"

"Mr. Yami went to pick up his armor," she said, putting sugar in the cups. "That's what Tristan to..."

"No!" Kaiba shouted, taking the jar from her hands. "Every day the same thing, Serenity! I have already told you a thousand times that I drink bitter coffee and bitter coffee means without sugar!"

"I'm so sorry, Sir. I'll get you another cup soon," said the light, almost red-haired girl, and she went to the piece of furniture where the kitchen items were.

"But he said we were going early," Mokuba insisted.

"Maybe he forgot." Seto saw that the girl had pulled out a green cup and rolled his eyes in annoyance. "Let's see, Serenity. My cups are white with blue borders and the one you just picked up is Yami. Do you think I'm going to drink something in the same cup as him?"

"No Sir. I'm so sorry," she said, turning to leave the cup in place and take the correct one.

"It might be," Mokuba thought, considering what his brother had said earlier. "Although a knight should never miss his promise..."

Seto smiled at the disappointment on his brother's face.

"If you want I can take you there, Mokuba" he proposed looking down at the table where the other two cups that Serenity intended to carry to Solomon and Tea were. "What does this mean, Serenity? Who were you going to serve coffee in one of my mu ... gs?" He ended with his eyes looking at the floor where his white blue-rimmed mug had just struck.

"I ..." The tears were about to appear in the young woman's eyes.

"You can't, Seto," Mokuba said. "You have to rest ... Apart it wouldn't be the same to visit the list field with you instead of the five-time Jousting Champion" he smiled.

"What?" Seto shouted furious at that comment. "Mokuba, being a stupid jousting champion isn't something extraordinary. The only reason why Yami participates in that tournament is because he has no other way to transcend because he is a good for nothing. And if he has kept that title for five stupid years, it's because his rivals are as useless as him, since people who do have relevant things to do aren't wasting their time in a ridiculous game of children," he finished.

Mokuba was astonished at the words of his brother. He was so surprised and Seto so annoyed that no one noticed that Serenity was crying because much of her salary would be destined to pay for the white blue-rimmed mug she had just broken. The youngest Earl began to nod slowly. He could not believe it. Was Seto...?

"You're jealous of Yami, aren't you?"

Kaiba frowned. Jealous? What reason could he have to be jealous of a useless scourge, champion of a ridiculous game for failures, whom his brother admired and considered his idol, his example to follow?

"Serenity, do you want to finish my coffee for once?" he said, ignoring his brother's pathetic accusations.

Serenity nodded and turned to take another white mug with blue edges. Mokuba periodically hit the floor with his shoe waiting for an answer from Seto, but Seto wasn't willing to give it to him.

"Hurry up!" Seto shouted irritably because Serenity was still crying on her back instead of working. But shouting to a person who is nervous is never a good choice; a second white cup of blue borders could break ... "Enough! Get out of there. I'll make my coffee since you're a good for nothing!" Seto said, walking to the cabinet and grabbing a cup. He returned to the counter where the boiler with coffee was.

"Can you tell why all this scandal is?" Tea asked, entering the kitchen and looking at all the white ceramic fragments on the floor next to Serenity. When she saw his brother there, she frowned. "Seto, what are you doing here? Shaadi said that you had to rest ... To prepare breakfast is Serenity's task."

"She's useless," Kaiba said, taking the handle of the cauldron with his left hand. "She doesn't even serve to prepare a coffee ... Ouch!" as he tried to serve, when he raised the boiler in the air, he felt a strong pain in the arm that forced him to release it.

"You're no good either," laughed her sister, coming over and pouring coffee on her own. "Here" she said giving him his white cup with blue edges. "And hold it with your right hand; it may weigh too much for your weak arm, too."

"Ha ... ha" Kaiba mumbled. He picked up the cup and headed for the exit.

"Seto, wait. Has Rouxx Anne got up already?"

"I don't think so; I suppose she's in the room," he replied as he walked again.

"Well, I'll go and see her, I have to talk to her," she said.

Seto stopped under the door, alarmed.

"Talk about what?" he asked, turning around.

"It's none of your business," she smiled, passing him by with two cups of coffee in her hands. Seto followed her.

"Don't worry, Serenity," Mokuba said. "When Seto gets angry he says a lot of things that he doesn't really mean. Come on, I'll help you clean." he smiled.


	12. Chapter 12

**Earls of Chester**

**Chapter XII: **

She was inside, standing before the windows of the small bedroom. During the short time she had been living in the castle—one day— she had been convinced that the garden of this place was the most beautiful in the kingdom. What she also knew was that, in addition to all the people of Cheshire, many people from neighboring counties thought the same thing.

She had visited several different counties, even very distant ones, and, despite the little time that she remained in them due to the antipathy of the citizens towards the ones of her class, she always get to know the castles of the nobles of each county. Of course, from the outside.

Although the one she was in now left much to be desired regarding the aesthetic aspect of its building because it was created with military functions, from her experience she could ensure that there was no garden equal in the kingdom. Most of all, it was strange to note that there were plants that could grow on a hill, since they usually had sandy soil, not suitable for cultivation.

She turned, interrupting her observation, and she set her eyes on the black wood that shone with the light coming through the window. From the moment he entered the room for the first time that piano caught her attention immediately. She'd never had a chance to see one before, but she knew what it was because the description his brother had made of them years ago. That instrument brought her memories of her brother.

"Excuse me." Tea peeked out the door after hitting several times, but as she was very focused on her meditations she hadn't noticed. "Roux Anne, I came to ask you for a favor."

"A favor?"

Needless to say, that confession was surprising. If Tea had to ask someone for something, in the list of possible people, she occupied one of the last places, or the last. Of course, maybe Roux Anne didn't.

"Some days ago I ordered a dress to wear during the opening of the Jousting Tournament this weekend," she began to explain as she entered the room. "I'm supposed to go pick it up with someone else, but I got notified that she's out of the Chester... I know I shouldn't bother you with these kinds of things, but I have no choice but to ask you to accompany me."

"All right, I'll go with you."

"Thank you!" The Countess relief was obvious. "If you refused, I would have been obliged to go with Serenity, and that would be so humiliating in front of other ladies."

Of course, her interlocutor didn't find it funny. In the list which she had been thinking previously, her place was behind Serenity. Unfortunately Tea didn't know.

"Is there any way I can hide my hair?" she asked, turning towards the closet.

The question impressed Tea but she knew the reason for it. Even so, there was no justification for such a concern; Roux Anne was of the nobility.

"I see no reason why you should cover it, no one would think that you have any connection with witchcraft and stuff, you know. You are a Countess. Now, your hair wouldn't be well seen in one of those filthy gypsies that camp near the list field." she laughed again, but stopped when Roux Anne didn't imitate her and that was uncomfortable. Perhaps the comment hadn't been very agreeable to her because possibly in Southampton the vision that they had of those communities was very different. "Well, I'll help you find something to use."

Kisara knew that if a noble woman was born with white hair, they would never accuse her. Her interest in covering her hair was so they wouldn't recognize her.

Mokuba was sitting in the room with a great disappointment showing in the expression on his face. He still couldn't believe that Yami had forgotten what he had promised. Perhaps he would have to resign himself to going to the cloth without him, although unfortunately only thinking about those conditions would lose all the excitement.

Joey entered the room to tell Mr. Moto that the carriage was ready. When he sensed the sadness of the young boy, he approached and sat down on the couch beside him.

"Hey Mokuba, what's up with that face?"

"My mother. You know, my father had two wives ..."

"I talk about your expression, not of your features. Just by looking at you, anyone would say that someone died."

"It's just that Yami promised to take me to the list field and I think he's not going to do it."

"Why do you say he won't?"

"Because he went to get his armor!" he shouted, but without reason and he soon realized that. Neither Joey nor anyone else was to blame. "I'm sorry..."

"He'll probably be there. If you want, I'll take you to the list field" Joey said.

"Yami told you to get me to the list field because he would reach us there?" The emotion with which Mokuba asked the question caused the squire of the county's five—time Jousting Champion to shudder. His comment had aroused hope in the young Earl, but in fact he did not know if Yami planned to go after picking up his armor or not. He did not want Mokuba to be sad again either...

"Yes, he told me."

Tea came downstairs with Roux Anne and Mr. Moto. With the latter she was discussing the inauguration of the jousting tournament, so close in time, and the clear favoritism of her husband and grandson, respectively. Of course, that wasn't news. Roux Anne thought that if his victory was so assured, it wasn't even productive to perform that championship. They should name Yami life champion and end that matter. In addition, it was a very risky competition.

"Joey is the wagon ready?" asked Mr. Moto as he reached the end of the stairs.

The blond man nodded, rising from his armchair. Mokuba imitated him, but unlike him, he opened his mouth to make use of man's best ability: the words.

"Joey will take me to the list field and there we will meet Yam" he smiled very excited.

Tea looked at Joey suspiciously.

"Yami said that?"

The guy nodded nervously.

"I hope he doesn't forget."

The five of them left the castle to their respective wagons, and Serenity joined the two boys on the road as she had to make some purchases for food.

Seto opened the door to the kitchen, the only place in the whole castle he had left to check, and finally he saw that there was no one left to demand him foolishness:

"Seto, you have to rest"

"If you don't rest you will not see my victory on Saturday, and I know you want to see me ..."

"Sir, what are you doing up? Your sister said we shouldn't let you leave the room because you must rest."

"No, Kaiba, even if you pay me I will not let you go out."

"Seto, it's better that ... I mean, Lord Kaiba, you'd better stay in your room to recover."

To hell with them all! He had much more important matters to attend to: he couldn't be worried about two wounds that almost killed him. Rouxx Anne would arrive the next day; she had announced it in the telegram that arrived the day before. And unfortunately he hadn't been able to devise a strategy to drive her away from his castle or his county; even of her life...

Not that he really meant murdering her, but it wasn't a bad idea to get rid of her forever. But how? That was a question to which he hadn't found a solution: and the only option he had until then had very little chance of achieving its goal. But it was best to concentrate on it, at least temporarily. He had to find a way to make it a safer, more reliable, more effective possibility.

Seto left the kitchen and crossed the room to the exit with a smile of conformity on his face. There was only one person in Cheshire who could help him.

"It's time I paid a visit to Shaadi."


	13. Chapter 13

**Earls of Chester:**

**Chapter XIII:**

Chester could be an enchanting county for a number of reasons: it had beautiful natural landscapes like the Beeston Hills, it was a place full of aesthetically attractive buildings - among which the castle of the Earls of Cheshire wasn't considered - and an endless number of recreational activities that attracted the attention of many foreigners developed in it, such as the Regional Jousting Tournament.

However, there was an unfavorable aspect for the place: the deplorable state of the roads in which it was almost impossible to travel if you traveled in cart. There were in them a great number of holes that in the times of rain and humidity became puddles of mud and made difficult the passage of the carriages. The wheels of the wagons got stuck in the mud or staggered, and sometimes they even overturned.

It was a defect that bothered a great part of the population and the three counts of Cheshire as well. The group was annoyed at having to walk the roads on rainy days. And the driver had to have a great experience so that the young nobles didn't reach the limit of their exasperation. That's why Solomon drove more often, and Joey rarely did. Although with some of the brothers, the whole effort of Mr. Moto to make the trip more enjoyable was never enough.

But this time Seto hadn't left his house and Yami Moto's grandfather was driving the cart in which Tea Kaiba was moving to the dressmaker's house. With her was also the young widow of the Earl of Southampton, who had on her head a blue crespina to cover her hair.

Both were surprised to see that the cart had stopped and it wasn't because they had reached the destination. They exchanged worried looks for a moment, and Tea was the one who descended from the carriage first. Roux Anne followed.

In the front of it Mr. Moto was with his eyes closed and a clear expression of pain on his face, while his right hand was on his chest.

"Mr. Solomon! Are you all right?"

The question was absurd in such circumstances, for it was obvious that the answer was negative. Tea immediately realized this, then looked at Rouxx Anne and said:

"We must drive back to the castle immediately" she said, remembering that she didn't know how to do it, much less on a road in such conditions. "We need Joey, but he's too far ahead of us." She turned her gaze away from the other woman to look at the other wagon in which her younger brother was heading for the list fields.

Roux Anne put her attention in the same place. It was true, they were at an appreciable distance, and running to where they were would be exhausting for Tea, who wasn't accustomed. It would also take several minutes to reach Joey and Mokuba.

On the other hand, riding one of the horses and leading them to the castle would be too suspicious in the eyes of the habitants of Chester, being an alleged countess and not a young woman accustomed to such activities. But it was urgent to make a decision. And so she did.

Tea was astonished to see Roux Anne run with such speed. The young woman was showing the strangest aspects of her personality. The countess with brown hair couldn't avoid associating those particular characteristics, such as running at high speed or tolerating such unpleasant beings, with their original place of residence. His cousin Devlin had also shown several strange customs …

Roux Anne had run many times before, but this was the most difficult because in those circumstances the footwear she wore wasn't very helpful. They got stuck in the mud or made her stumble. Before, everything was easier, more natural. Before she could run more freely. Then she wouldn't have fallen although the largest stone would have crossed her path. But soon the girl understood why the roads of Chester were so detested by almost all habitants of the county.

"Oh, poor girl," she heard a woman approaching. She looked up and saw that it was a blond-haired, blue-eyed woman reaching out to help her up. There was someone else beside her, and Roux Anne had only a moment's contemplation to realize that she had to stand and walk away quickly despite the puzzled eyes of the other two.

No, she couldn't let Crawford recognize her.

Two men shorter than himself allowed him access to Dr. Shaadi's home. Seto crossed the short distance that separated the gate from the entrance with fast step although he was aware that, even as hurry as he was, Shaadi always took his own time. He struck the great door with a certain desperation that he didn't bother to hide.

Then he leaned against the entrance, leaning on his right shoulder, and with the same hand took out his pocket watch from it. No way he would move his left arm…

He looked at the time in the gold piece and smiled when he realized that it was still a long time before his sister returned. What he didn't know was how long it would take Mokuba to learn that Yami wouldn't be on the list fields and how long it would take him to make the decision to carry his fury back to the castle. For these reasons he was in a hurry, but apparently Shaadi was not.

And speaking of Mokuba, he was angry at him because he refused to go with him to the list field but he went with pleasure in Joey's company.

Seto paid a little more attention to the watch in his hand. Unlike the mysterious feats that hid similar clocks he had seen in other nobles, who narrated them in some celebration, his own didn't carry any kind of fascinating past.

No, Tea was wrong every time she mentioned that he inherited it from their father. The clock was of French origin and his father had obtained it during a military battle. By killing the leader of the opposing troops he was made of that artifact that his eldest son used now. Seto had inherited the watch of a complete stranger…

He turned away from the door as he noticed it was opening, and saw Shaadi staring at him with a slight frown.

"Good morning," he said and opened the door wider for the Chester's Earl to enter. "To what do I owe the visit?"

"That in life you have to take some time for everything?" Seto entered the mansion thinking vaguely that it was the first time he did it, "For example, for friends."

Although Shaadi was an educated man and he didn't need much time to draw conclusions, it took him several moments before making any comment.

"I can't guess what you come here to ask me, so why don't you proceed to tell me by yourself?"

"I don't come to ask you anything," said Seto. Although the expression on Shaadi's face was paradoxically inexpressive and Seto didn't discern distrust in it, he did feel the need to extend his explanation, which in truth he himself didn't believe either. "But … there is nothing interesting in the castle to do, considering that I should stay there, and I chose to come and visit you … unselfishly. I brought you a present," he added, reaching into his pocket and then reaching for Shaadi. With it he held a precious gold watch.

The young doctor walked slowly toward him, stopping at a step and said:

"Is that so I can access more quickly to what you're going to ask me for?"

It is clear that Seto would had insisted that he didn't come to ask for anything if it weren't because he was surprised by the immediacy with which the county doctor continued to speak.

"The next time you want to see me, you can send someone to look for me; you don't have to come here when I told you to don't leave your home."

Kaiba lowered his eyes, pondering what to say. Saying something like "I didn't want to bother you" or "I don't want you to waste your time, because I know you work a lot" and other things would be absurd because the previous day he had already required him twice.

Was there any way Shaadi could get involved in his plans without realizing it? Because it was obvious that, being aware of what Seto planned, he would never agree to help him.

And there was no other person in Chester with the authority to assert anything like what he was plotting that Shaadi would say. It seemed that his only option was clear…

"Okay, I came to ask you something," he confessed in annoyance.

The other young man nodded.

"Do you see? Saying the truth makes things easier" Shaadi extended his hand and seeing the confused expression of Seto, he added: "Weren't you going to give me something?"

Sure, the clock. Kaiba hesitated; it wasn't originally in his plans to get rid of it. The things he inherited from strangers were very important to him…

"Thank you," Shaadi said after the lighter-haired guy gave him the watch. He set it aside and continued. "Now that I have the freedom to denying myself of what you are going to ask of me, I am listening. Go ahead."

Seto closed his eyes trying to appease his fury. He had never tolerated mocking him, but it wasn't the first time Shaadi had done it and he had to endure it because he was the only person who could help him. Terrible situation. But he still said.

"I need you to say that Tea has a very contagious disease."

* * *

**A/N: I'll come back to this chapter an rewrite it because it's really annoying. I remember that it was 2011 or 2012 and I wanted to update at any cost. But this Seto and Shaadi scene was a pain in the neck and it turned out so bad. **


	14. Chapter 14

**Earls of Chester:**

**Chapter XIV: **

"Joey!" shouted the young woman whom the Earls called Roux Anne when she was at a short distance from the cart where the blond, Mokuba and Serenity were traveling. It had taken her a few minutes to get closer and she was exhausted, as well as nervous about her sudden encounter with Crawford and his wife. Even so, she didn't think he could have recognized her.

Her legs hurt, the pair of shoes she was wearing was very uncomfortable and that's why she took them off in the middle of the race. The trouble was that she hadn't paid attention to the direction in which she had thrown them. But then she would worry about it.

Joey was driving the wagon, wishing Yami would be on the list field, even if it was by luck, or that he went it there too, and that he wouldn't take long in coming. Because like Dr. Shaadi, Joey also believed that Mokuba was capable of throwing tantrums.

When Joey had learned to drive the wagons, Solomon had taught him two fundamental lessons, as well as how prudent it would be to never divert a cart when he drove through a place in awful condition.

The first was that he never take his eyes off the front and neither his attention; because he could see in what condition the road was and concentrate on determining where the carriage should pass. The other was that he never took out his head by one side to look back, because such an action could trigger unfortunate accidents.

But Joey imposed his own driving style, so he ignored Solomon's recommendations when he heard he was called. He pulled his head out of the cart and saw that it was Rouxx Anne. He didn't hesitate to stop and go down quickly, ignoring Mokuba's protests, because if she had reached the wagon on foot something bad must have been happening.

Roux Anne didn't wait for Joey to complete the distance between them to start talking.

"Mr. Solomon is not fine. We need to go back to the castle and neither Tea nor I know how to drive … "she said agitatedly, lifting her gaze from Joey and directing it to his side.

Joey did the same and found that Mokuba had also left the wagon, not so Serenity, and now he was standing next to them. His face showed that he was disillusioned, apparently everything complotted for him to not attend the list field. Worst of all, Yami was waiting for him and he surely hadn't forgotten his promise. But the boy wasn't so selfish to want to continue no matter what happened to Solomon. Surely there would be another chance to go.

Mokuba turned and silently headed for the head-down carriage, followed by Joey and Roux Anne. The priority was to return to the castle and then Joey would go for Shaadi.

-.-

In anyone's face it could be seen the expression of amazement after such a confession. Anyone's, except Dr. Shaadi's. His imperturbable face marked presence at every moment whatever he saw, whatever he heard or whatever he felt. Shaadi wasn't Shaadi if his face filtered any emotion. And this was something that all the people of Cheshire knew. And this was something Seto knew.

But the oldest of the Earls of Chester was also aware that Shaadi- like any other - should be baffled after hearing his request. Surely he was questioning the reasons why Seto wanted everyone to believe that his sister was sick.

"This… what you ask me…" he finally said, sitting down in one of the brown chairs and motioning for Kaiba to sit down in the other, "Does that have to do with the consult I have with your sister this afternoon?"

Seto was surprised at the question, and he didn't hesitate to show his astonishment.

"I didn't know you were going to see my sister today."

Shaadi nodded and explained,

"This morning Yami came to see me quite concerned about Tea's behavior and he hinted that certain attitudes might be symptoms of some illness, though I doubt they are."

Seto noticed that Shaadi not only looked closely at a place in the room where there was no one but his eyes looked as the two times he had been mocking him. But there was no one there!

Kaiba shook his head, irritated. And he didn't understand what was going on in the county doctor's mind, and his last words carried no clue as to what it could be about.

"What symptoms?" he asked worriedly.

He hadn't noticed anything in Tea that made him think she might be ill, but lately he hadn't paid much attention to her. He remembered that this morning, when he had argued with Mokuba, she looked as normal as ever.

Shaadi paid attention again, now with his immutable face and gaze.

"He said that she went to sleep too early and that in the middle of the night …"

"Enough," Seto interrupted. "I was never interested in when my sister went to bed or what she does next." After this unnecessary clarification he continued. "I didn't come to ask you to tell Tea or Yami or Mokuba that she is ill, but to others, in the case a stranger comes to ask you."

Seto aware clear that the strange person who could ask him would be a woman.

"Why?"

The truth is that Seto was waiting for that question; It could be said that he saw it coming since he confessed why he came. But he wasn't sure how much he should explain to him. How much should Shaadi know?

Without realizing it, Seto immersed in a debate with himself about what to do for a few minutes in which Shaadi didn't bother to interrupt him. Not until he realized that if Seto continued to say nothing he would be wasting valuable time to deal with other things he was about to do before the unexpected visit.

Besides, knowing his profession, Seto had to be clear that he couldn't do what he asked.

"You don't have to explain your reasons to me if you don't want to. Anyway, I can't help you" he said parsimoniously. This blunt statement alarmed Kaiba. "I can't lie about that kind of thing, and I take it for granted that you knew that."

"But … you should lie to only one person."

"A lie can trigger many more. Not even you should lie …"

Shaadi stared at the entrance, and Seto believed that the conversation was over. It couldn't be …

"And can you not say that Tea is not ill?" he insisted.

Seto couldn't get a response from Shaadi because at that moment Joey entered the room running. The blonde stopped by Shaadi and said,

"Doctor, I need you to come to the castle." Joey took a deep breath before giving any explanation. Shaadi and Seto were already standing and that made him notice the Earl's presence there, which surprised him. "Mr. Mouto is not fine."


	15. Chapter 15

**Earls of Chester:**

**Chapter XV:**

"He will be better," said Shaadi, leaving the room followed by Tea and Rouxx Anne. "H will need to take an infusion of artichoke before each meal, at least three times a day. That will help him recover from this little heart attack." The true countess listened closely to him as they descended the stairs. "I also recommend you include garlic in his meals, so it will help his blood flow better ... I don't know if you understand" concluded Shaadi as they reached the main hall of Beeston Castle. Then he fixed his eyes on her.

Tea, realizing that he was watching her, analyzed what he had just said. After a few moments of reflection, she spoke with uncertainty:

"You mean his blood does not flow well and that caused his heart attack?"

"Exactly," Shaadi said as he sat into one of the armchairs and opened his briefcase. "I'll write you the exact measurements so you can prepare them."

Tea also took a seat.

Noticing the parsimony with which the county doctor extracted a notebook and a pen of his characteristic briefcase, Rouxx Anne decided to go out for a moment to the garden. There was no point waiting for Shaadi to finish writing the recipes, it would probably take many minutes and not because they were complex.

He decided to go out for a while. Although this quarterdeck was not a wonder, she had to admit that its garden was beautiful. A true work of art designed and guarded by Mai Valentine, although that she didn't know.

However, she couldn't contemplate her surroundings for a long time, as she soon noticed that the elder Kaiba brothers was also there, sitting next to a white marble fountain, which had at its ends four sculptures of white dragons with blue eyes . These orbs were formed by sapphire stones embedded in the stone, and were large. It could be said that in that garden was a very valuable treasure.

Seto's gaze was lost, as if he were deep in thought. Maybe he was trying to give a final shape to his strategy.

Rouxx Anne approached determined to know the whole plan that, without having looked for it, had her as participant.

Seto, noticing that she was approaching, looked at her in surprise. Usually she avoided him, or at least that was the feeling he had.

"What exactly is the plan?" she asked once and for all. Perhaps it was not the best way to start a conversation, but interrogations were not her specialty.

Kaiba took a deep breath as he considered it, and then sighed, giving up.

With Solomon ill, he had no one else to discuss this matter with, and this girl was the only person, apart from the two of them, who was aware, albeit partially, of what was happening. He could tell him everything, because she was definitely not a real threat.

Besides, the tiny power she had from what she knew was incomparable with his. With a simple thunder of fingers, he could easily take her out of his way. But at the moment he didn't have the slightest intention of that happening.

And besides, he needed her, at least for now, so winning her trust was favorable ... and it could be said that it was part of his strategy.

"The big plan is for Rouxx Anne not to stay here," he explained, his gaze fixed on her. "The first step was to make everyone believe that you are her, and we got it. The second is to get Rouxx Anne to believe that there is a very strong reason not to approach the castle, and I hoped that Shaadi would help me with this point, but I still can't convince him" when he mentioned that detail, he turned his gaze away. He didn't feel comfortable admitting that he didn't achieve what he intended.

The main conclusion she could draw was that the real Rouxx Anne must be either very dangerous or very powerful, or both. Why did Seto Kaiba want to keep her away from his castle and, therefore, his family? What did the woman know or could do?

The real countess and she had something in common: they posed a threat to the most influential men in the county: Seto Kaiba and Pegasus J. Crawford, respectively.

When she was about to tell Seto that as far as she knew Shaadi it was clearly not to be lent for that kind of farce, the doctor went out with Tea and Joey.

Seto watched them approach, convinced that with a few minutes more and getting rid of the witnesses (his sister, Joey and the girl whose real name had forgotten to ask again), and would convince Shaadi. And then he remembered "Seto." He instantly noticed that his sister, annoyed, was about to scold him. "Joey told me that you were in the house of Shaadi when he arrived. We told you that you can't go out and, above all, you have to do repo..."

"I felt bad," interrupted the eldest of the nobles, "so I had to go and alone, since no one remained at my disposal. Anything could have happened to me ..."

Internally he congratulated himself for coming out of that problem. He hated it when her sister - or Shaadi- behaved like a mother hen.

Tea, feeling a little guilty for not having left anyone in the castle to attend him, turned her gaze to Shaadi without knowing how to apologize. He himself said:

"You didn't tell me you felt bad."

Seto tried to control himself. He was beginning to think that Shaadi had something against him. But he would also sort this.

"I didn't have time... Wheeler arrived soon. What you did manage to mention is that you had an appointment with my sister at t request from Yami. Have you examined her yet?"

"I hadn't …"

Shaadi would have finished quietly if Tea hadn't stopped him.

"You guys made an appointment without even letting me know? Why? I am perfectly well!"

Again, one of the earls interrupted the doctor:

"From what Shaadi told me, Yami has noticed strange behavior in you during the nights. It could be something that is weakening you, which would make it more likely that you would catch any contagious disease."

"Tea, we will not know what you have until I examine you." Shaadi considered it necessary to intervene when noticing that Seto was manipulating the situation at his whim.

"Exactly, so the best thing is that until we know what you have we keep you isolated from people. Don't you think so, Shaadi?"

"I'll examine her in a few hours," he clarified, knowing where Seto wanted to take him. "Yami said he'll take you to my house when he came back, I now have other clients to attend to."

Without another word, he started walking toward the exit of the castle. He was not irritated; he had simply had enough of the Earls of Chester for that day ... and the day before too.

Joey followed him to accompany him to the exit. If it was a rather long road, it would be eternal to pass through with Shaadi pace. But being polite was part of his job and, above all, his way of being.

Tea, after breaking the news, paid attention to her brother again.

"Do not ever think I'm going to be locked up. I'm going to see the dressmaker right now."

"It would be better if she came here," Seto said. He got up ready to enter the castle again, not without first asking Rouxx Anne: "When Wheeler returns, send him to find the mentioned dressmaker."

"How dare you be so misplaced?" argued Tea irritated, more so because her brother was going away without paying attention to her. "She isn't your servant, she is our guest. You can't give her orders like that!"

-.-

Later, when Yami entered the castle, it was a couple of hours before dinner. He had been a little late, but by his excellent friendship with Shaadi he didn't doubt that he would understand. He was back with Tristan, having been touring much of the Chester countryside all afternoon. He had checked all the corners, interrogated all the peasants, offered tempting rewards but hadn't found his objective.

At first, when he decided to suspend the search for the moment, he had felt a little discouraged. But he felt better, two days before the tournament, and he was not the kind of man to give up before the time runs out.

As soon as he crossed the front door, he couldn't help but be alarmed when he saw Mokuba sitting in the middle of the room, with a look that expressed sadness and disappointment. He felt terribly wrong, he had promised to take him to the list field, but he completely forgot it as he left to the smithy.

He was not encouraged to take a step further. He had no excuse, and he didn't think he could invent a good one.

"Tell me you have not been waiting for us until now on the list" Joey suddenly saw him at the door and spoke to him. It was the worst thing that could happen, because now Mokuba had his attention on him, just when what Yami most wanted was to not being noticed. He was about to babble something meaningless, but his squire didn't let him. "Yami, we couldn't go to the arena because on the way your grandfather began to feel bad and we had to return. There was no way we'd let you know."

"I'm sorry, Yami. I really wanted to go." Mokuba lowered his head in dismay.

Yami quickly realized what had just happened. He looked at Joey relieved and grateful, but he frowned as he went over what he had just said.

"How is my grandfather?"

"He's resting. Don't worry, Shaadi had examined him."

A little quieter, he approached and sat next to Mokuba.

"Tomorrow we'll go to the cloth." Mokuba looked up, and his eyes were much brighter. Yami smiled. "I give you my word, again."

"Great!" Mokuba shouted excitedly as he hugged him. Tristan looked at Joey as he nodded in surprise; his friend had saved Yami.

"When you see it on the day of the tournament, you'll see that it's beautiful." Tea descended the stairs again, and again she was accompanied by Rouxx Anne. "Black and green, it's the best combination." Yami tensed and let go of Mokuba's embrace to pay more attention to his wife." I bet it will be the only ..."

"Do not you even think so," interrupted Yami, authoritative, as he approached the stairs. "It's mine. I thought I'd get it first. And its place is next to me, not next to you. Leave that absurd idea of taking it to the tournament right now because I will not allow you. You will not ruin my plans ..."

"The dress?" Rouxx Anne asked, without understanding. Tea also didn't understand what Yami was saying...

"Yeah, the dre..." Yami realized what he was going to say and closed his mouth.

Joey and Tristan started to laugh.

"You thought to get her dress first?" Wheeler bent and hugged his stomach, his laughter was painful but hard to contain.

But a glare of the five-time champion Justas de Cheshire was enough to remind them of their place.

Taking advantage of the silence, Yami clarified:

"I thought you were referring to something else ... Come with me to see Shaadi, we're still on time. It's still early before dinner."

"Not."


	16. Chapter 16

**Earls of Chester:**

**Chapter XVI: **

Yami turned on his bed, facing the ceiling. It no longer made sense to keep his face away from Tea: she was fast asleep. And besides, he'd bet she did not even notice the moment he went to bed.

The truth was that he could not sleep. The reason was not that the Jousting Tournament would start in two days. He had never suffered before, during or after a competition.

Those who would undoubtedly have been suffering the previous days were all those opponents that sooner or later, in the list field, would fall yielded at his feet. Or literally at the foot of his horse.

What really worried him was his recent discussion with Tea, because she had refused once and a thousand times to have a simple consultation with Shaadi to get out of doubt.

And in that pull and pull and none loose, it was himself the only one who lost. The time passed quickly and when he was aware it was dinner time. The visit would have to wait until the next day.

He had reluctantly sat down to dinner. During the whole meal he did not speak to his wife. He also avoided crossing glances. His discomfort was evident because he could not understand such resistance. Why had she become so infatuated?

And then it happened again: Tea rose from her chair suddenly and she said goodbye to the rest, apologizing that she was tired. Then she climbed the stairs and locked herself in the room.

The situation for Yami resembled a _deja vecú_. At that moment, apart from being alarmed, he had begun to be afraid. Although it was clear that it was absurd, because he still did not know what to fear.

A part of him wanted to convince himself that something strange was not happening, like the rest of his family, who did not find Tea's attitude shocking. Like his grandfather, who noticing his confusion during the dinner asked him if he was well, but nothing hinted about her.

He had nodded, though the truth was that he felt bad: disoriented, confused ...He abandoned his thoughts as he watched Tea turn slowly. His wife set the sheets aside and stood up.

"What's going on?" he wanted to ask, but he stayed with the intention. He could not separate his lips, not even moan. And when he tried to get up, he could not do it either. He was not able to move, he was paralyzed.

And desperate. But he could not do anything when he saw Tea leaning out onto the balcony. And much less when she came back into the room, opened the door and went out, closing it and leaving him completely alone.

-.-

Seto was in his room, reviewing again and again the questions he had to resolve soon. Unfortunately, his cousin's wife would arrive Cheshire the next day. He could possibly keep her away from his sister for a few days, barring Shaadi from examining her. Without knowing for sure if Tea was healthy, the county's only doctor could not deny it.

Perhaps, with that, this woman would stay away for a while from his castle. Although everything was uncertain. He would need luck for that idea to work, and the eldest of the Earls of Chester did not find easy to trust in his luck.

Assuming, however, that his pseudo-plan worked: How to prevent Rouxx Anne from crossing with Yami or Mokuba on the list field? He could not stop Devlin's widow from attending the Tournament, let alone his brother-in-law competing.

Logically, he was convinced that there were endless alternatives to reach his goal. Unfortunately, he still could not think of any, and he had very few hours left.

He was distracted for a moment when he heard footsteps outside his bedroom, down the hall. He thought it might be Mokuba going to the bathroom, or Solomon going down to the kitchen to sneak things Shaadi had forbidden. And even that girl trying to escape again.

Thinking about the latter, he came out of his bedroom to corroborate how wrong he was assuming such things. Already in the hall, he realized that there was no one else. He walked to the other room and opened the door a bit, trying to make as little noise as possible. He breathed a sigh of relief that his last hypothesis was wrong. She was sleeping soundly.

It had been utterly absurd to suppose that she would try to flee again. He had definitely convinced her that it was best to stay in the castle.

Besides, why would a person who had nothing like her prefer to leave instead of staying in a place like that, full of amenities?

He returned to his room, quieter. No doubt, she would stay for much longer.

When he was already covering himself with the sheets, he heard the main doors of the castle being opened. And then, closed.

"Impossible," he murmured irritably as he made his way to the balcony.

-.-

Yami heard the noises fearing the worst. Had it been Tea leaving the castle? He closed his eyes and took a deep breath trying to calm down. Because immobile, mute and paranoid he was not going to be able to do anything. He wished it was a nightmare that would end soon.

-.-

Peeking out on the terrace, Seto saw his sister in the middle of the garden, facing the forest. From where he was, he could not see her face to verify if she had gone there sleepwalker. Although she had never acted like this before.

"Maybe she's not ill, she's crazy," he said.

"Tea!" He shouted, but his sister paid no attention. "What are you doing?" He insisted.

There was no case, no reaction. He was going to have to go find her and waste some time that he really needed. Suddenly, he saw a strange black shadow emerging from the forest and advancing to where Tea was. It looked like a cloud of smoke, not solid, but it had a vague human silhouette. And it made unbearable sounds, as if coming from his side.

As soon as he looked to one side, a flock of bats pounced on the Earl of Chester. Slowly, Seto made his way back to his bedroom and managed to close the windows. He would definitely have to go get his sister outside, and fast. Had not Yami noticed anything?

He ran out into the hall. Meanwhile, the noise of the animals crashing against the walls continued. As he was about to reach the stairs, he was again surrounded by bats, which he now saw as black and green-eyed all, and he could not understand where they had come from in such amount.

He tried to move as he could, he could barely see. What he felt perfectly was how a pair of cold hands settled on his back and pushed him down the stairs. Step by step, he tried to stop falling, but he could not hold on to anything. He rolled over and over, hitting everywhere.

Until he realized that he had already reached the end.

Agitated, he tried to get up and open his eyes, considering a miracle that he was still conscious. But as he looked around, he realized that he was in his own bed, under the sheets, and that, apparently, it had all been a nightmare.


	17. Chapter 17

Earls of Chester: Chapter XVII

As soon as he opened his eyes, he noticed everything around him more clearly, as if it had already dawned. But that was implausible; it was dawn, Tea wasn't there and he couldn't move. Or at least he was convinced of that until he raised his arm to his eyes to cover from the light that was bothering him.  
Noticing that he could move now, the idea that nothing had been real, though he was convinced that it was and that Tea was still sleeping, crossed his mind.  
But the truth was that he was alone, the sheets on his wife's side were cold, and the windows were open.  
He wasn't sure about what to think. Last night's - or a few moments ago - had felt so real.  
_"It was real,"_ he told himself as he got up, relieved that he could walk. He had never felt as helpless as that night. If it had been a nightmare, which he still didn't believe, it had been the worst of his life.  
He went out into the corridor with the intention of looking for Tea, who he supposed was in the garden because of the noises of the door that night.  
He crossed with Kaiba on the way, who was coming out of his bedroom as well. His expression was confused. They were already two, then.  
"Are you all right?" he asked his brother-in-law, just in case.  
"I don't know ... I had a nigh..." he interrupted, remembering that in his "dream" Yami hadn't been caring for his sister._ "Useless," _he thought.  
He began to feel uncomfortable at the Yami's look, frowning, fixed on his head.  
"What do you see?" he said irritably.  
"Did you get hit?" Yami asked curiously, pointing to his forehead.  
"Of course not..." he hesitantly finished his sentence. What did Yami see in his face? A bruise? A concussion, as if he had really fallen off the stairs?  
The oldest of the Earls of Chester returned to his room and he stared himself in the mirror. Yami followed him, intrigued by his appearance and his reaction when Yami asked.  
Seto had a bruise that ran diagonally across the right half of his forehead. He pressed his purple skin to confirm that his sight didn't deceive him. If that blow had been real, then the others were too.  
He jerked his nightshirt off. And then he discovered that his whole torso was bruised.  
"What happened to you, Kaiba?"  
"Then it wasn't a dream..." he murmured without registering the question of his brother-in-law.  
"Dream?" Yami began to suspect that Kaiba's "no dream" was related to his own "no dream." "What kind of dream?" He insisted, without getting a reply from Seto. "Answer me!" he demanded finally.  
Seto went to the balcony, followed by the other, and began to relate how he had discovered his sister in the middle of the garden in the middle of the night, and about that strange figure he saw approaching his sister. He omitted details that even he couldn't believe, such as the absurd attack he received from a flock of bats or the pair of cold hands that pushed him. He simply told him that he fell down the stairs for a hurry and that he couldn't remember anything else. He wasn't going to look like a superstitious man in front of his brother-in-law.  
Yami decided not to tell him his own experience, aware that it would be incredible, especially for someone like Seto. How to explain that he had been paralyzed when something attacked his wife? What or who was capable of achieving something like that?  
The story of Seto, mainly about the incorporeal shadow, it was too fantastic. Without being sure that what he had heard was entirely true, he inspected the garden from the balcony, finding no trace of Tea.  
"Did not you notice when she left?" Seto, knowing now that everything had been real, was very upset about that part of the story.  
"Of course I did..." Yami bothered with the innuendo.  
Both left the room and descended the stairs to the main hall, where Solomon drank his tea and Mokuba was ready to visit the list field once and for all. Without paying much attention, they left the castle to explore the part of the garden that couldn't be seen from Seto's bedroom. They couldn't find her in any corner within the walls, so they separated. Seto went into the forest and Yami headed for the less steep slope of Beeston Hill after he argued that Seto wasn't in a position to cross all the boulders he would find on that road. Even for him, it would be very risky.  
As he crossed the drawbridge that stretched over the pit, he begged to find his wife safe. His heart sank when, a few yards before reaching the barbican, he saw Tea faint on the lawn, on one of the banks of the moat. He walked the distance that separated them in an instant. Upon arriving with the young woman, he found that she breathed normally and she seemed to be simply unconscious.  
A little more relaxed, he carried her in his arms to return to the castle, not before checking with a glance around that there were no signs of what had happened.

-.-.-.-  
A couple of hours later Seto was going to the county court, annoyed at everything, because after all, he hadn't had enough time to adjust his plan. Of course, he was relieved that his sister was safe, though he wouldn't admit it out loud or under torment. Once again they had called to Shaadi to have her checked, and the doctor told them she was well, but very weak. He suggested that they might be symptoms of anemia. When Yami told him how she had left the castle without being aware, Shaadi merely stated that she must have been sleepwalking. Nothing else. And none of them dared to delve into the rest of the incredible situation they had experienced.  
Later, Kaiba left the castle with the doctor, taking advantage of the moment to try to convince Shaadi once and for all. It was in vain.  
And there he was, walking down the path to the magistrate's entrance. Outside, two officers guarded the entrance. Both greeted him with a slight nod, to which Seto didn't respond.  
In the rest of the place, it was empty, except obviously Crawford's office. Surprised by the lack of staff, Seto went into the room. Pegasus was his back turned to him, looking out the window at nothing in particular, though the greatest of the Earls of Chester couldn't see that detail.  
"I see she has not arrived yet," he said, making the long-haired man startle. Pegasus turned around and nodded.  
"Young Kaiba, good afternoon," he greeted as he sat down, leaving behind his personal concerns to deal with matters more at hand. "The countess will arrive at any moment."  
Looking more closely at the man, Pegasus noticed the bruise on his forehead. But before he could say anything about it, Seto spoke.  
"Where the hell are all your men?" the most important of the county nobles asked as he took a seat in front of Crawford. At another moment he would have stood by the door, wanting to leave, but he was too tired and his whole body ached. Anyway, he wanted to leave too.  
"They're on the borderline," Pegasus explained without much thought, "attending an urgent mission."  
"You only have two officers for the whole county," Kaiba reminded him, incredulous at the unconcern with which Crawford took up the matter.  
"I know. But they are after a very dangerous criminal, and that is our priority. Anyone who crosses her path could be in danger. She escaped from here, so we must take responsibility and act in every way we can to capture her again" he was justifying, perhaps revealing more data than suited.  
"So dangerous is she?"  
Seto couldn't quell the speculations that were generated in his mind when listening to those facts. So many coincidences were incredible.  
"You wouldn't imagine," Pegasus said dryly.  
And the truth is that Seto didn't imagine how that woman -if indeed Crawford referred to her- could be a threat.


	18. Chapter 18

**Earls of Chester:**

**Chapter XVIII.**

After a few minutes of silence uncomfortable for Crawford, who wanted above all to be informed by one of his men that they had already captured that gypsy, as for Seto, who obviously did not intend to dialogue with the other, but he did not stop thinking and thinking of the worst scenarios, and so the time seemed to go by slowly, one of the men guarding the building entered the room, followed by Rouxx Anne, whom he introduced, and a young redhaired boy accompanying her.

Crawford stood up immediately and bowed to the Countess with such eagerness and confidence that it made Seto feel curious about what they had been up to all this time.

Seto also wondered other things. That woman, despite her young age, looked more than thirty years old. Her facial features were exaggerated: lips so thin that when she smiled they went unnoticed, leaving in evidence the length of her teeth. A pair of eyebrows with definite shape, but so populated that they seemed not to be separated on the bridge of er nose too upturned. Her dull hair, although arranged in an elegant hairdo, gave the impression of being dirty.

In addition, each time he had seen her in person, she wore an expression of calm and self-improvement that made Seto loathe to observe her. Even more so in the present moment, when he was the victim of all the insecurities that his plan offered.

If Mokuba, Yami or Tea had ever seen her, like him when he met her at the wedding with his cousin Devlin, they would conclude that she was diametrically opposed to the woman Seto passed for Rouxx Anne.

How could it be explained that Devlin had taken an interest in such a being?

Seto recalled that at the time they were teenagers and his cousin lived in Chester, he had shown obvious signs of being romantically interested in his sister. Seto always had the impression that this attraction had never been reciprocated, although his father and uncle approved it and made future marital plans based on it.

By the time Yami entered Tea's life, his uncle's health was totally deteriorated. Although economically and politically it was better to maintain the Southampton County legacy in the family, the Baron with his charisma won the approval of the former Earl of Chester.

Without the help of his father, Devlin's dream of marrying Tea was frustrated. When he inherited the County of Southampton, he did not hesitate to settle there, away from those who - in his eyes - had ruined his life.

When Seto attended the wedding, he proved by his treatment that Devlin still resented them. And that made him wonder why his cousin, who had been in love with a woman like Tea, proceeded to marry another with totally opposite characteristics.

It was not for economic reasons or prestige, no. That was the reason why she married Devlin. But ... and Devlin? What kind of link had led him to bond with that woman until his death?

The countess was not surprised that Seto did not greet her. She knew him enough to have supposed he would react like that. Devlin used to have similar attitudes.

She did not care. This was not a family reunion. Economic interests were at stake for both. The sooner they could get to the point and avoid wasting time in formalities, the Anne and Crawford took a seat opposite the eldest of the Kaiba brothers. The widow began to briefly explain the circumstances in which her husband passed away - a topic that Seto did not care about in the least - to make it clear that what she came to talk with the Earl of Chester were the conditions stipulated in the will of her deceased husband so that each one could obtain the part of the inheritance that corresponded to them.

Seto was surprised that his cousin, seeing that he had died when he was barely twenty-two years old, would have made the decision to write a will where all his assets were not given directly to Rouxx Anne. But why had Devlin opted for it? Did not he want his wife to inherit everything? Did he intuit - or knew - that he was going to die soon?The young red-haired man who accompanied the countess, and who had remained behind her standing, gave the woman a cloth envelope that she had been carrying.

"My husband wrote that his assets, the sum of two hundred thousand sterling, were inherited by me" informed him, while she removed the original testament of the envelope. "He also ordered that his territorial assets, which include Southampton County and Dorset County, return by hand to the Earl of Chester. That is, to you."

Seto Kaiba was too surprised to react immediately. While he knew that his cousin held a grudge, what amazed him was not that Devlin decided to return the inherited counties to the family. The surprising thing was that Rouxx Anne told him that she had been disinherited of more than seventy percent of her husband's possessions with all the calm of the world. Neither his own family inheritance added to what Devlin was leaving could be compared to the value of the counties mentioned. Maybe Seto was missing a detail that explained that strange attitude.

Rouxx Anne stared at him intently, with a neutral expression that the young Count could barely bear. He risked a glance at Crawford, who had a smile on his face.

"Is that all? "he asked at the end, for lack of better ideas.

" Yes, that's all about the allocation of assets ..." Rouxx Anne made a brief pause, while extending the testament to Kaiba "What I want you to study carefully are the conditions that would enable us to dispose of the inheritance."

Seto watched her for a moment before going to read the will, to try to read on her face if the conditions favored her or not, but to no avail.

As he was reading the section detailing the conditions that must be met, Seto was clenching his fist harder and harder, until a pang of pain reminded him that it was not a good idea to make efforts that involved his injured arm.

Seto Kaiba had never hated his cousin, but now he would begin to do so. Was that Devlin's revenge on his father, who had passed away barely a year and a half ago?Was Seto inheriting an absurd revenge for facts in which he had not had any participation? There was nothing he wanted more than to have his cousin alive again, to kill him with his own hands.

"It has to be a joke" he murmured, realizing too late that he was not alone.

"It's what I believed when I was informed," the Countess of Southampton told him. "But I have consulted with different judges in the Kingdom and all have agreed that, due to the originality of the will, that clause is inevitable."

"Why did he put these conditions?" Seto asked her.

"I'm as amazed as you are. Devlin never talked to me about it."

Seto looked at the document again. He read it again and again, trying to find a reasonable explanation or alternative to meet the established conditions.

"As you see, to collect my share of the inheritance, I am tied hand and foot to the decision you make."

"I'm going to consult this will with another judge," said the Earl of Chester, standing up and watching Crawford's reaction out of the corner of his eye. The county judge did not flinch. He just nodded, seemed to have his mind occupied with other subjects.

"Yes. You are free to consult it with whomever you think is convenient, "the Countess agreed. " If I were you I would hurry, because the Tournament, as you know, starts this Saturday."

* * *

Yami advanced through the forest of Beeston, continuing his search. He had considered suspending it for that day, but Mokuba himself offered to take care of his sister while he was absent.

Yami chatted with his young brother-in-law about the incidents that happened that night, but without going into details about the strange paralysis he remembered having experienced. He did not want Mokuba to be scared.

Yami left the castle accompanied by Tristan, as he foresaw that he might have trouble capturing and moving a wild animal.

However, upon reaching the middle of the forest interior, something unexpected happened. In the middle of the stone path, standing, was the famous black horse with green eyes that he had been looking for. When he put his eyes on the animal's eyes, it stared back, and the Baron had the feeling that the horse recognized him.

More incredible was what happened next: when Yami descended with the intention of placing the head, the horse approached meekly and let him put it on. Then they left the forest, and the green-eyed horse accompanied them.

For Yami, this whole situation was a sign that they were destined to compete together.


End file.
